[2026] PTE Academic Reading - Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, located on a remote island between mainland Norway and the North Pole, serves as a secure backup for the world’s crop diversity.Often referred to as the 'Doomsday Vault,' this facility is designed to store duplicates of seed samples from national, regional, and international gene banks.The primary objective is to safeguard global food security against accidental loss or catastrophic events that might destroy original seed collections.Permafrost and thick rock surrounding the facility ensure that the seed samples will remain frozen even without electricity, providing a natural fail-safe.Since its opening in 2008, the vault has received deposits from nearly every country in the world, ranging from major staples like rice and wheat to rare local varieties.One of the vault's most significant uses occurred in 2015 when the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas requested a withdrawal to rebuild its collection after its original gene bank in Syria was made inaccessible by war.This event proved the vault's critical role as a global insurance policy for agricultural genetic heritage.However, the facility itself is not immune to environmental changes, as warming temperatures in the Arctic caused unexpected meltwater to enter the entrance tunnel in 2017.While no seeds were damaged, this incident highlighted the ongoing threats posed by climate change even to our most secure structures.In response, the Norwegian government invested in major upgrades to ensure the vault remains waterproof and resilient against future permafrost thawing.