Controlled burn on the Robert Betz Prairie at Fermilab. View looking northeast from the 15th floor of Wilson Hall. Periodic burns promote the growth of native prairie plants and wildflowers and return nutrients back to the soil. The late Dr. Robert Betz of Northeastern Illinois University was instrumental in working with Fermilab to return the area within the accelerator ring to a natural Illinois tallgrass prairie. The prairie at Fermilab comprises more than a 1,000 acres.