-- . U of Cornell botanical research center under construction
The University of Cornell of Ithaca, New York and the Punta Cana Group
began the construction of a botanical research center in Punta Cana last
week. The new facility, to go up at a cost of RD$9 million donated by
the Punta Cana Group, is part of the ecology preservation programs
implemented by the Punta Cana Group in the East Coast. The new facility
is going up on a 10 million square meter land plot located adjacent to
the Punta Cana Beach Resort and the Punta Cana Marina.
The Punta Cana Group already operates a Fruit Tree Garden and Ecological
Trail in the area. Tourists can visit the ecological reserve and its
virgin forests and tropical fruit tree garden area to see up front
banana, pineapple, orange, sugar cane, cherry, guava, papaya, water
melon, avocado, mango, lemon, pomegranate and other exotic fruit trees.
Eleven fresh water springs of crystalline waters surrounded by tropical
humid forest are located in the area. As part of the University of
Cornell program, the potential of tropical plants to produce medicinal
products will be studied. Modern laboratories will be installed to
research marine life, animals, plants and microbes found in the area.
There will be
rooms for students and faculty, classrooms with sophisticated
telecommunication equipment, including a satellite uplink/downlink,
interactive video and Internet communication. The University of Cornell
will lease the facility from the Punta Cana Ecological Foundation for
US$1. The project should be completed by January 2000. The DR facility
will link into other Cornell centers located in Sweden, Australia,
Holland, Costa Rica and Honduras that are part of the University's
Global Classroom program.
Frank Rainieri, president of the Punta Cana Group; William Crepet, who
will be in charge of the laboratory; Daryl Lund, dean of the School of
Agriculture of Cornell University; and Theodore Kheel, former student of
Cornell and president of the board of directors of Punta Cana Group
traveled to Punta Cana for the ground-breaking ceremony.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Mon Feb 28 2000 - 15:35:31 AST