Since being dubbed by the EPA in 1969 and reported to American homes by Walter Cronkite as the “Dirtiest City in America”, the City of Chattanooga has been hard at work reversing the negative impacts of local industry on its air, land, and water quality. Following years of mitigation, the community and local government came together to draft a Climate Action Plan in 2009. As a way to plan, measure and manage its progress toward these prescribed energy reduction goals, the City of Chattanooga joined the Better Buildings Challenge in 2015. Despite achieving a 20% EUI reduction goal in 2018, the City has continued to plan and invest in multiple energy efficiency, renewable energy and resilience-focused projects that have further reduced its EUI by 36%. 

Chattanooga has committed 2 million square feet of its municipal building portfolio to the Better Buildings Challenge, including over 200 individual facilities. Buildings include City Hall, City Council, the Downtown Public Library, Development Resource Center (housing the department of Public Works and the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency), Police and Fire Department facilities, Youth and Family Development Centers, and other administrative buildings. Most importantly, the portfolio includes the Moccasin Bend Waste Water Treatment Plant, which services a six-county area, and is by far the largest energy consumer of the city’s owned and operated facilities.

In addition to the commitment of the city’s municipal building portfolio, the City of Chattanooga is engaging the community at large to join the Challenge. Through partnerships with the Electric Power Board (EPB), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Chamber of Commerce and others, the city aims to provide vital resources and guidance to potential program engagement partners, including local businesses, schools, home owners and industry. Further, the city has formed a Stakeholder Advisory Group, which will be comprised of key area representatives, to provide transparency and an opportunity for input in the city’s challenge, while also creating a forum for information sharing, collaboration and engagement in the program.