Minister to open science building extension

Minister to open science building extension

The Minister for Crown Research Institutes Steve Maharey will open Landcare Research’s new building extension at Lincoln tomorrow. The extension includes more space for the country’s largest herbarium.

The Allan Herbarium houses more than 600,000 plant specimens (both indigenous and exotic), and includes specimens collected by botanists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander during Cook’s first voyage to New Zealand, 1769 – 70. The Herbarium is used by researchers, schools, conservationists and biosecurity agencies.

The collection increases by up to 10,000 specimens per year. The extension will allow space for a further 11-22 years of collection depending on the rate of increase.

The building extension also includes meeting and seminar rooms which are built to allow easy conversion to an additional Herbarium vault if needed in years to come.

ENDS

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