The Controlled Environment Agriculture Program
(CEAC) facilities are located within the Campus Agricultural Center
(CAC) at Campbell Avenue and Roger Road, approximately 3 miles north of
main campus.
CEAC facilities include an office building,
greenhouses and growth chambers. All facilities were designed and
constructed since August 2000. Construction and operation costs were
provided by CEAC annual budget funds. Infrastructure, maintenance and
construction support was provided by CAC personnel, and includes 24/7
operations support.
The CEA building (2088) is a 5000 square foot,
Spanish style, single story building. It contains the Directors office and
4 faculty/staff offices, a laboratory, a graduate students’ office, a
multi-purpose room, reception area, and kitchen facilities. The laboratory
is for Plant Physiology and Instrumentation and is headed by
Dr. Chieri Kubota,
and her technician, Mark Kroggel, Plant Sciences. The Plant Physiology
laboratory has capability for plant photosynthesis and transpiration
measurement; nutrient and plant constituent analysis; and general
laboratory functions.The multi-purpose room is designed for 70 seat
classroom lecture or conference room. It is instrumented for distance
education, including video cameras for web casting classes, laboratories
or lectures. It includes large screen projection equipment with connection
for overhead projection, laptop, internet, and video/DVD.
The
greenhouse facilities include a 5200 square foot educational laboratory
(2078), 2 research/demonstration greenhouses (2091-A & -C) (2700
square foot each), and an 11,000 square foot retractable roof greenhouse.
These facilities offer experiential activities for students, including
design and operations of computer environmental controllers, drip
irrigation and fertigation systems, and general greenhouse actuators for
environmental control. Another greenhouse research facility includes
a 25 by 75 foot single bay, multiple-environmental zone greenhouse (3018),
whose aerial environment (Vapor Pressure Deficit) and root zone
nutritional environment (Electrical Conductivity) are computer controlled
to an accuracy greater than any greenhouse system on campus.
The controlled environment chamber facilities includes a 900
square foot metal building which houses 3, 9 square foot reach-in growth
chambers and a 150 square foot walk-in growth chamber. There are also 2,
150 square foot walk-in low temperature storage rooms available for use.
The CEA Extreme Climate Laboratory located within the ARC Building
(2019) currently houses the Mars/Moon Inflatable Greenhouse, which is a
lightweight, 18 foot long by 7 foot diameter climate controlled flexible
film structure, and which formerly housed the South Pole Food Growth
Chamber, an automated, closed production system for fresh vegetables for
the scientists at the South Pole. |
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