Most of the belching smokestacks that once displayed Chattanooga's manufacturing might along the city's skyline have been cleared away. Some were taken down along with the factories they served - victims of changing environmental rules and consumer tastes. Others smokestacks remain, but their emissions are far cleaner than in the past. In a generation, Chattanooga changed from what the federal government labeled as one of America's smoggiest city in 1969 to what Outdoor magazine just named for a second year as the best outdoor town in America.
The metamorphosis was not without some pain and lost jobs. But in a dynamic economy, just as in nature itself, the decay of one industry nourishes another.
A new study by the consulting firm Environmental Entrepreneurs estimates 44,269 workers in Tennessee are employed at more than 2,600 businesses that have sprung up in the past couple of decades to work on energy efficiency or renewable generation. Such clean energy jobs grew by 2,600 in the past year and are likely to continue to grow as Wacker Chemie starts up its polysilicon plant in Charleston, Tennessee, this fall and the Tennessee Valley Authority expands both its use of renewable energy and its promotion of energy conservation programs under its newly adopted power plan for the future.
Tennessee has the potential for even more growth. The Volunteer State ranks 12th highest among all states in per capita energy use at home. Tennessee's share of clean energy jobs, 1.6 percent, is less than a third of that in states like Vermont, according to the E2 study.
In this month's cover story, Alex Green explains how America's biggest carpet makers have revamped their operations to cut both energy and water consumption and are now reusing billions of pounds of carpet previously just tossed into municipal landfills. Such green initiatives are getting an extra PR boost from the U.S. Green Building Council and the local Green|Spaces, each of which have their own sustainability certification programs to recognize businesses and buildings built to be more environmentally sustainable. Mitra Malek tells how Chattanooga is one of the leading cities of its size in pursuing LEED (Leadership in Energy and Efficiency Design) projects with 37 such sites already. Tim Omarzu showcases a half dozen old factories that have or soon will be recycled for new office or residential uses.
Effective managers have always known that reducing wastes makes good business sense. Cutting the amount of effluent into the waste stream or recycling old parts and buildings is paying off for many businesses highlighted in this month's issue. The smokestacks of the past have given way to a clearer and brighter future for our region.