Our Sustainable Site
At Cascade Meadow, we’re pretty proud of our site.
We think it has a lot to offer southeast Minnesota as an educational resource. In particular, our site has three main “gems” we’d like to tell you about, and invite you to come and explore.
1. Our Building: The 16,000 square foot Environmental Science Center was designed, constructed, and operates as a high perfomance green building. Come and explore the building to learn about sustainable features including:
- energy-efficient construction
- passive solar design
- indoor environmental quality
- renewable energy
2. Our Landscapes: The designed areas immediately surrounding the building incorporate best practices for had storm water management to reduce flow rates and water pollution including:
- pervious pavements
- green roofs
- bio cells
- native plants
3. Our Natural Areas: Wetland specialists are restoring the landscape to include seven of the eight Minnesota wetland types and a ten acre lake. They are also creating three upland communities and a habitat for Monarch butterflies. Upon completion the natural areas will be accessible by an extensive trail system.
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