After a highly successful nine-month pilot funded by TDEC’s Organics Management Grant, Chattanooga residents citywide will have a long-term solution to reducing their food waste.
During the trial period, 669 total households participated in curbside and drop-off food collection and successfully diverted 97,746.96 pounds of food waste from landfill disposal.
Moving forward, this agreement will allow any Chattanooga household, renter or homeowner, to participate in the drop-off kiosks at no cost to the resident. Once a household enrolls by signing up online, a representative from NewTerra Compost will reach out with educational materials and instructions on participation.
Kiosks are located at all five of the City’s Recycling Centers, but residents will also be able to utilize NewTerra’s existing drop-off locations.
Residents shared overwhelmingly positive feedback upon completion of the pilot.
Sydney Copeland stated, “[I’m] so glad that this program exists in the area! Customer service with NewTerra has also been very friendly. I hope that the compost program continues to grow and set a high standard for environmental care in the city. It’s so important for people to know that they are doing something good for the planet and community, even if it seems small.”
Meryl Stark shared, “I hate having food waste, but I was able to feel a little less bad about it knowing that it wasn't going into the landfill. This program also gave me the opportunity to discard a lot of expired food items that I've been holding onto (knowingly and unknowingly) because it didn't feel right to throw them into regular trash.”
This composting service is a strategic step toward reducing local landfill volume and methane emissions, which will result in better air quality for all Chattanoogans. By participating, residents contribute directly to a regenerative "closed-loop system" that captures organic waste and repurposes it into nutrient-dense soil.
This finished material is used to cultivate new food resources, replacing landfill matter with active soil restoration. All program participants will be able to utilize the finished compost product.
Visit www.newterracompost.com to sign up for this program and find the composting kiosk closest to you.
This program is partially funded under a grant contract with the State of Tennessee.