Long Hunter State Park has completed the Platinum Recognition Level of the TN State Parks Go Green With Us Initiative and Guidelines. The guidelines include multiple areas of environmental sustainability including education and outreach, water conservation, energy efficiency, waste and recycling and much more. Congrats to this park for going above and beyond to be excellent stewards of our natural resources.

The mission of the Tennessee State Parks Go Green With Us program is to preserve and protect our state parks through sustainable park operations, resource conservation, and recycling. Program components cover a diverse array of initiatives, including energy and water conservation through equipment and operations upgrades, recycling programs, projects to enhance ecosystem health, and erosion control, among many others.

• Long Hunter State Park has converted 95 percent of their lighting to LED.
• The visitor’s center has reflective window film which reflects sunlight keeping the building cool and the energy costs down. The film is transparent and doesn’t change the view out the window.
• Also, some of their parking lots have solar-powered security cameras.
• Long Hunter has a strong recycling program and regularly recycles about 25 percent of their total volume of waste.
• Park staff are continuously working to upgrade their trails to minimize erosion from heavy use, and have recently completed creating a mulched walkway on a section of the Volunteer Trail.
• They also encourage growth of native plants and vegetation, and one of the rangers keeps bees which are good for pollination and ecosystem health.