Eden Project

Eden Project
General information
TypeMultiple greenhouse complex
Architectural styleInspired by James T. Baldwin's Pillow Dome
LocationCornwall, England
Coordinates50°21′43″N 4°44′41″W / 50.36194°N 4.74472°W / 50.36194; -4.74472
CompletedMay 2000 (2000-05)
Opened17 March 2001 (2001-03-17)
Technical details
Structural systemSteel frame and thermoplastic
Design and construction
Architect(s)Grimshaw Architects
Structural engineerAnthony Hunt and Associates
Services engineerArup

The Eden Project (Cornish: Edenva) is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay pit.

The complex is dominated by two huge enclosures consisting of adjoining domes that house thousands of plant species, 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) 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.