About Us > Kimberlin Nature Education Center >

613 Riversville Road
Greenwich, CT 06831
203-869-5272
fax 203-869-4437

The Kimberlin Nature Education Center opened in 2003. Built of many sustainable and recycled materials, the Center features a wide variety of green building techniques such as a geothermal heating/cooling system and low energy lighting. It houses the offices of Audubon Greenwich, classrooms, Kiernan Hall and Nature Art Gallery, the Nature Store, the Children’s Learning Center (with hands-on nature activities and interpretive natural history exhibits), and the wildlife observation window.

Hours
Monday through Sunday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
See our homepage for information regarding the 2007-2008 holidays.

Admission
Audubon Members: Free
Nonmembers: adults $3, children/seniors $1.50

Location and Directions
The Audubon Center at Greenwich is located at 613 Riversville Road, at the corner of John Street in Greenwich, Connecticut. We are easily accessible, just 40 minutes north of New York City and 15 minutes south of Stamford, Connecticut. We are close to the Merritt Parkway, Route 95, Route 1, and to Westchester.

Click here for detailed directions and a location map.

Green Building Techniques

The Kimberlin Nature Education Center incorporates a number of “green” design features, including:

• Recycled fiberglass window frames
• Recycled plastic to construct outdoor decks
• Beams made of recycled steel
• Recycled gypsum wallboard
• Insulation made from recycled paper
• 100% wool carpeting
• Flooring, shingles, and other lumber certified to be from sources utilizing conservation forestry practices
• Cement and asphalt paving replaced with gravel or crushed stone, allowing rainwater to infiltrate and recharge groundwater
• Geothermal HVAC system

The biggest payoff is the geothermal heating and cooling system. Conventional systems heat air with electricity or by burning natural gas when outside air is coldest. Conventional summer systems cool air when it is hottest, using electrical refrigeration. These methods of cooling and heating are both expensive, and contribute to global warming.

At Audubon Greenwich, the earth heats itself and cools the building, taking advantage of the constant year round temperature (about 54 degrees) of the ground four feet or more beneath the surface. A liquid—chemically similar to antifreeze—is pumped underground into a grouping of pipes (made from recycled plastic). Liquid colder than 54 degrees is warmed, and liquid hotter than 54 degrees is cooled, both by the surrounding earth. The heated or cooled liquid (depending on the season) passes through the closed loop into the building, which it heats or cools, as needed. That precise need is determined by computer-operated controls.

The energy for changing the temperature comes from the sun-warmed earth, and it is free. The only added energy is electricity to circulate the liquid and run the heat pump.

If you would like more information about the building, or to arrange a tour of the facility, please contact Karen Dixon, Center Director, at x226.