Tennessee Aquarium to build $4.5M freshwater institute
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) – The Tennessee Aquarium has announced plans for a $4.5 million structure near the campus of Baylor School that will house the Tennessee Aquarium Freshwater Conservation Institute.
The aquarium announced Wednesday that the 14,000-square-foot riverfront facility will be a permanent base for conservation science. Officials say they hope it will vault their work to the national stage and reinforce their assertion that Chattanooga is the conservation capital of the South.
The building will both help facilitate research and be a display center for the region’s rich freshwater life.
The aquarium says freshwater ecosystems are the most threatened on Earth. The extinction rate of freshwater animals is two to five times higher than terrestrial or marine life.
Work is expected to begin on the 14,000-square-foot building next month, with a targeted move-in date of next fall.
