Architecture students
burrow into deep project

They're designing a worm tunnel at
the zoo to offer keiki a crawl-through view

By Pat Gee
Star-Bulletin

What's it like beneath the Earth's surface? The folks at the Soil and Water Conservation Society want to give keiki a chance to get a worm's-eye view.

That way they get an up-close look at what's in the soil that is essential to life.

That's why the society asked architecture students at the University of Hawaii to come up with designs to build a "worm tunnel" at the Honolulu Zoo. A recent contest gave the society a plethora of ideas, which will be consolidated by an architect they hire.

Susan Kubo, a civil engineer with the federal Natural Resources Conservation Service and a society member, said over a year ago she proposed the idea for a portable worm tunnel that she's used at different schools, but the society was so excited about it, they decided to build a permanent one.

She thought the portable tunnel would cost only about $200, but now the project will probably cost $250,000 just for its construction.

Another $250,000 will be needed to maintain the structure, but she doesn't think raising the money will be a problem. All sorts of agencies have enthusiastically promised to finance the project, Kubo said.

She hopes construction can begin before the end of the year, depending on when the money comes in, and take three to six months to complete.

The worm tunnel would be about 200 by 150 feet long, near the zoo's snack bar and children's zoo, and probably consist of a curvy enclosed path resembling a worm's body, with several short little tunnels or "cave rooms" shooting off from the sides that kids can crawl into, Kubo said.

Throughout the tunnel would be life-sized renditions of roots, water features, a big mongoose, perhaps, worms, and different types of soil, fungi and organisms, she said.

Although the project is aimed at educating children at the fourth grade level, any child from preschool on up who can crawl through the tunnel can enter.