Botanical Research Institute of Texas Receives $300,000 Grant From National Science Foundation for Protective Cases for Its Invaluable Herbarium

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Botanical Research Institute of Texas Receives $300,000 Grant From National

Science Foundation for Protective Cases for Its Invaluable Herbarium

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TO ENVIRONMENTAL EDITOR:

Botanical Research Institute of Texas Receives $300,000 Grant From National

Science Foundation for Protective Cases for Its Invaluable Herbarium

TEXAS, FORT WORTH, Apr. 26 -/E-Wire/-- The Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT) announced today that it has received a $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for the purchase of 400 specially designed steel herbarium cases. Ruth Andersson May of Dallas also gave $17,000 to help fund the purchase of the cases.

BRIT's invaluable and growing collection of approximately one million dried plant specimens, which represent most of the earth's plant families, has been short of space and storage capacity. The new cases will provide better housing for BRIT's presently overcrowded collections and will protect them from pests and other hazards such as fire and water damage.

NSF, an independent agency of the U.S. Government, was established by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950. Its mission is to promote the progress of science, to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare, and to secure the national defense.

BRIT, which has one of the largest herbaria in the United States, has the largest independent herbarium in the Southwest and one of the world's best collections of Texas plant specimens. A nonprofit international botanical resource center open to research scientists and the public, its mission is to conserve our natural heritage by deepening our knowledge of the plant world and achieving public understanding of the value plants bring to life.

Receipt of the Vanderbilt University Herbarium of 360,000 specimens in 1997 established BRIT as one of the best resources in the world for information about the flora of the southern United States with the largest existing collection of Alabama vascular plants and the largest collection of Middle Tennessee vascular plants.

Since it was founded in 1991, BRIT has become a source for enlightening the public about the importance of plants in our lives and in the maintenance of a healthy planet and a decent quality of life. Its botanical library houses more than 70,000 volumes of books, periodicals, and journals from more than 90 countries. Along with its education program, BRIT conducts research on plants and publishes journals and books on botany.

For information about BRIT, call [REDACTED-PHONE], or visit its Web site: www.brit.org.

Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Inc.

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