Facilities

The Institute Headquarters has 50,000 square feet of modern, state-of-the-art facilities that are secure, functional, accessible, and that service the scientific community of the Institute and its collaborators. The Headquarters complex is located in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico, and houses:

• The Institute’s Headquarters building - a historical building fully restored and modernized into a high-performance sustainable building.
• A recently remodeled Forest Service National Library, containing major publications in English and Spanish on forestry, ecology, management, and utilization of tropical forests as well as other documents and materials related to tropical forests around the world.

• A Chemistry Laboratory focusing on analytical chemistry of plant tissues, water, soils, and air. In a typical year, more than 50,000 analyses on samples collected from tropical ecosystems around the world are completed by laboratory personnel.

• A Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing Laboratory to study landscape ecology using GIS, Satellite imagery through Earth Observation, and field studies. This laboratory develops information, methods, and products using spatial data and analyses at multiple scales, which are made available through maps, publications, and training.

• A technology transfer conference center with capabilities for multiple use combinations for meetings, trainings, and conferences. This facility has a food serving area and accessible restrooms.
• A multipurpose building that houses a dormitory, a gym, general storage area, office space, and lunch area.
• An area for sample preparation and long-term storage of samples.
• Three back-up generators to ensure that electrical power is available for continuous operation during power blackouts, and a 3,400-gallon potable water tank that can provide drinking water during water shortages.