From Waste to Wattage: The Multi-million Dollars Transformation of Chattanooga Biosolids Program As municipalities nationwide grapple with the "triple threat" of aging infrastructure, tightening biosolids regulations, and rising energy costs, the City of Chattanooga is launching a historic multi-million dollar initiative to redefine its biosolids lifecycle. This presentation will provide a comprehensive case study of the Moccasin Bend Environmental Campus (MBEC), tracking its 65-year journey from traditional sewage sludge disposal to its future as a regional "Waste-to-Energy" hub. The Past: The Era of Stabilization For decades, Chattanooga has operated a highly successful, award-winning Class B Biosolids land application program. While effective, this "linear" model was inherently tethered to external variables: weather-dependent hauling schedules, the logistical burden of transporting approximately 70,000 wet tons of lime-stabilized biosolids annually for land application, and the long-term uncertainty of regional agricultural land availability due to rising soil pH’s from lime stabilized biosolids. The Present: Strategic Optimization Under Pressure Today, MBEC serves as a critical regional utility under the monitoring of a federal Consent Decree. The current program focuses on maximizing dewatering efficiency and nutrient management. However, the "Present" is defined by a realization: the status quo is no longer sustainable. With hauling costs escalating and the industry pivoting toward higher stabilization standards from public outcry, the city has leveraged this pressure to pivot toward a circular economy that has been decades in the making. The Future: The Process Optimization For Wastewater Energy Recovery (Class A POWER) The centerpiece of Chattanooga’s future is the introduction of a fully mesophilic anaerobic digestion (AD) process, dewatering with centrifuges and then further processed by Thermal Dryer (as a service provided by a vendor). This is part of the Class A POWER (Process Optimization for Wastewater Energy Recovery) project and wastewater treatment plant upgrades for the City of Chattanooga at Moccasin Bend Environmental Campus. The projected outcomes of this anaerobic digestion and Thermal Dryer will increase our biogas production that will be used to power linear generators, greatly reduce our biosolids volume and get us to Class A biosolids end use benefits. Chattanooga’s story is a roadmap for utilities seeking to turn regulatory requirements and rising operating cost into opportunities for resiliency. This presentation will provide a clear understanding of the ROI for fully mesophilic AD systems and Thermal Dryer technologies, strategies for managing large-scale capital transitions, and a vision for the future of resource recovery in Moccasin Bend Environmental Campus.