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Overview
Water is used across campus to maintain campus landscapes, heat and cool buildings, and for use throughout dorms and academic halls. Much of this water comes from the City of Durham, but Duke has worked to reduce its dependence on the city’s water supply and to implement ways to reduce and recycle water on campus.
Given the Duke Forest, Duke Gardens, and thousands of trees on campus, it makes sense that Duke was given the moniker “university in the forest." However, campus natural spaces extend beyond the forests to other managed and unmanaged landscapes. Natural spaces encompass all green spaces on campus, from manicured quads to pocket prairies and forest remnants.
Highlights
Reclamation Pond
The water reclamation pond, location near Erwin Road off of Circuit drive, collects rainwater and runoff from 22% of the main campus area. This water is used in the nearby chilled water plants, saving up to 100 million gallons of water previously pulled from the city’s water supply per year, while also creating an outdoor recreation space.
Duke's water reclamation pond, which is used to create chilled water for campus cooling.
Duke Forest
The Duke Forest, owned and operated by Duke University, is a 7,000 acre research and teaching forest established in 1931. Over the past 90 years, Duke Forest has grown and evolved into a sustainably managed, mixed-use forest, which includes student and faculty research plots, miles of trails for community use, and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified timber harvesting operations.
Duke Gardens
One of the most popular destinations at Duke University is the Sarah P. Duke Gardens with over 600,000 annual visitors. The 55 acre Duke Gardens is home to the Blomquist Garden of Native Plants, the Culberson Asiatic Arboretum, and the picturesque Terrace and Historic Gardens.
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The iconic Meyer Bridge, which is located over the large pond in the Culberson Asiatic Arboretum, is one of the most well-known features of Duke Gardens.