Scenic City Scraps to Soil

Seed

Natalia Artz

Planted this seed

Scenic City Scraps to Soil is a targeted, high-impact initiative designed to bring zero-waste practices into Chattanooga’s most visible tourism and hospitality hubs. Chattanooga has built a national reputation as the Scenic City, a destination defined by outdoor access, environmental stewardship, and a thriving tourism economy. However, a significant portion of waste generated by high-traffic hospitality destinations still goes to landfills, particularly food waste and single-use plastic products. We currently partner with established sustainability leaders like the Tennessee Aquarium, the Chattanooga Zoo, Clumpies, the Creative Discovery Museum, Marriott Chattanooga Downtown, Rock City, and Ruby Falls....

Photos

1 Carter Street, Chattanooga, Tennessee 30707, United States

Downtown Chattanooga boasts the highest density of hospitality and event infrastructure in the region, and thus is the most effective zero-waste proving ground for its visibility and high waste generation from tourism. As millions of people vacation in Chattanooga, they bring external waste streams to our local landfills. Composting services in the tourism sector reduce this outside impact and extend the lifespan of our landfills.

Gardeners

Normand Lavoie
Michael Ryan
Natalia Artz

Roots

Downtown Chattanooga Alliance(not committed yet)
World Centric(not committed yet)
ILSR - Institute for Local Self-Reliance(not committed yet)
BPI - Biodegradable Products Institute(not committed yet)
City of Chattanooga Department of Public Works(not committed yet)

Guides

Chattanooga Tourism Company

Fertilizer

Local Compost Site
Fleet of trucks already in service
Proven track record of successful implementation at scale
Full stock of 64 gallon compost bins, buckets, and compostable products
Printed educational materials

Budget

High-end estimate of $15720: a 12-month plan for weekly compost collection services across 5 tourism-centric locations. Cost covers bins, labor, diversion metrics and easy-to-use account portal, as well as optional service twice weekly.