Eden Project | |
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General information | |
Type | Multiple greenhouse complex |
Architectural style | Inspired by James T. Baldwin's Pillow Dome[1] |
Location | St Blazey, Cornwall, England |
Coordinates | 50°21′43″N 4°44′41″W / 50.36194°N 4.74472°W |
Completed | May 2000 |
Opened | 17 March 2001 |
Technical details | |
Structural system | Steel frame and thermoplastic |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Grimshaw Architects |
Structural engineer | Anthony Hunt and Associates |
Services engineer | Arup |
The Eden Project (Cornish: Edenva) is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay pit, located 2 km (1.2 mi) from the town of St Blazey and 5 km (3 mi) from the larger town of St Austell.[2]
The complex is dominated by two huge enclosures consisting of adjoining domes that house thousands of plant species,[3] and each enclosure emulates a natural biome. The biomes consist of hundreds of hexagonal and pentagonal ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) inflated cells supported by geodesic tubular steel domes. The larger of the two biomes simulates a rainforest environment (and is the largest indoor rainforest in the world)[4] and the second, a Mediterranean environment.
The attraction also has an outside botanical garden which is home to many plants and wildlife native to Cornwall and the UK in general; it also has many plants that provide an important and interesting backstory, for example, those with a prehistoric heritage.
There are plans to build an Eden Project North in the seaside town of Morecambe, Lancashire, with a focus on the marine environment.