Ontario Construction News staff writer<\/p>\n
Niagara College has broken ground on a new, state-of-the-art greenhouse.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is an exciting time for Niagara College (NC) as we break ground on a new, cutting-edge greenhouse that will support advancements in applied research and new, hands-on student learning opportunities,\u201d said President Sean Kennedy.<\/p>\n
The site of the future greenhouse was recently fenced off behind the existing teaching greenhouse at the College\u2019s Daniel J. Patterson Campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake, and construction is scheduled for completion by March 31, 2024.<\/p>\n
The 1,258-square-metre greenhouse will include a horticulture laboratory to meet research needs for HESIC\u2019s industry partners, as well as a new vertical grow room to allow expansion into this area of research to expose students to vertical controlled environment agriculture.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis new state-of-the-art facility will be a game changer for HESIC, as it strives to help our vital greenhouse industry innovate while growing new learning opportunities for our students,\u201d said Marc Nantel, PhD, Vice-President, Research, Innovation & Strategic Enterprises.<\/p>\n
Five individually contained bays will enable HESIC researchers to control temperature, humidity and lighting in separate environments for applied research projects in a variety of configurations, as well as integrated pest management and growth trials.<\/p>\n
Since 2014, HESIC has supported the horticulture and agriculture industry by providing close to 90 industry projects. With demand growing from companies of all sizes in need of greenhouse expertise, the new facility will open doors for HESIC to help more businesses \u2013 with 53 leads identified for projects in 2024-2025.<\/p>\n
The next-generation greenhouse is expected to cost $9.4 million, and will be a hub for the College\u2019s Horticultural & Environmental Sciences Innovation Centre (HESIC), which aims to meet growing demands for applied research services from industry and together, with the existing teaching greenhouse, will provide an expanded learning environment and new opportunities for students in NC\u2019s School of Environment and Horticulture.<\/p>\n
One of four research and innovation centres within NC\u2019s award-winning research & innovation division, HESIC specializes in performing growth trials with horticultural crops that evaluate innovations and improvements.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am very pleased that this incredibly important project will become a reality,\u201d said John F.T. Scott, who served as chair of Niagara College\u2019s Board of Governors from 2017-2020, and oversaw the initial conception of the project. \u201cThis new facility will significantly enhance Niagara College\u2019s capacity for horticultural education and research which will further solidify its position as a key driver of innovation and growth in one of Niagara\u2019s core industries and Ontario\u2019s key economic sectors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ontario\u2019s greenhouse industry is one of the most important and fastest-growing economic sectors in Canada with 1,000 greenhouses and 14.4 million square metres of harvested area. Ontario employs more than 16,000 people in the greenhouse sector, which has more than $1.7B in sales and $79M in exports.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ontario Construction News staff writer Niagara College has broken ground on a new, state-of-the-art greenhouse. \u201cIt is an exciting time for Niagara College (NC) as we break ground on a new, cutting-edge greenhouse that will support advancements in applied research and new, hands-on student learning opportunities,\u201d said President Sean Kennedy. The site of the future […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[28,29],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9955","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-contracting","8":"category-current-news"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n