Launch of sky-high lookout over the world’s biggest greenhouse
August 13, 2010
In its most radical development ever, visitors to the Eden Project’s Rainforest Biome will soon get a chance to climb way above the treetops and enjoy a unique bird’s eye view of the biggest greenhouse in the world.
The Rainforest Lookout is a new aerial platform at the top of the 165-foot-high Biome – taller than the Tower of London – so visitors can look down on the tropical canopy in a way they never could before.
It’s being officially opened by a secret celebrity who will do a daredevil stunt off the sky-high viewing platform on August 25.
Tim Smit, Eden’s Chief Executive, said: “We’re going to give visitors a whole new perspective on the rainforest with a view usually seen by only the most intrepid of explorers and scientists….and birds! The world’s largest rainforest in captivity is about to become even more thrilling – and terrifying.”
The Rainforest Biome houses plants from the Tropical Islands, Malaysia, West Africa and Tropical South America. There are plants and crops from tropical environments and rainforests, including bananas, coffee, balsa, mahogany, bromeliads (orchids), spices and tropical ferns.
From the Lookout, visitors will be able to see giant trees such as kapok and balsa which have nearly reached the biome ceiling. They may even catch a glimpse of wildlife such as tree frogs and tiny birds known as Sulawesi White Eyes.
The Lookout is also another way Eden is telling the story of rainforests and their importance to the survival of our planet.
An area of rainforest the size of the Rainforest Biome is destroyed every 10 seconds, with palm oil a major driver of deforestation threatening wildlife such as the orangutan. Eden has already eradicated palm oil from the biscuits, soap, and Cornish pasties that it stocks and has adopted a policy not to buy any new products which contain palm oil.
An extra charge applies for access to the Rainforest Lookout with funds going towards Eden’s educational programme on rainforests.
