Most new lakefront homeowners seem to want to cut trees down between the house and the lake when they first buy a East Tennessee lake property. I STRONGLY urge you live with what you have for a full year first. I can’t count the number of homeowners that came back to me and said “I wish I had left the trees alone. Now I have no mature trees to provide shade, privacy and protection.”
Be aware of fines:
Going around the law in your area can be very costly. A East Tennessee homeowner found that out the hard way. After cutting 9 shoreline trees down (without getting a permit) to open his view, the owner was fined by TVA. How did they find out he cut them? Satellite photos! And you won’t be pleasing your neighbors at all, they will most likely turn you in. CLICK HERE to read how to avoid mistakes when selling your lakefront home.
What can you do?
First, it’s important to learn about the law from your specific East Tennessee lake area. Every state, town and lake community have individual laws and regulations regarding what you can and can’t do along the shoreline at your lakefront property. Keep in mind, a permit is almost ALWAYS required to do anything around the lake.
Below is a summary of Tennessees TVA “Shoreline Construction” information.
“At TVA, our goal is to protect the shoreline of the Tennessee River watershed while supporting recreational access to the waters we all enjoy. That’s why Section 26a of the TVA Act requires that a permit be attained before any shoreline construction activities—such as building a dock or stabilizing the shoreline—begin.
TVA must be able to ensure that your project is in alignment with our integrated management of the river for multiple public benefits, which include recreation, flood control, navigation, power generation and water quality. The Section 26a permitting process—explained in the video below—helps us do that.”
For the most part, all construction or alterations to the shoreline on TVA reservoirs require TVA approval, even minor changes to the dock. Be sure the plans in the permit match exactly what is constructed on site. TVA considers minor shoreline alterations to include, but not limited to: residential docks, piers, boathouse, landbased steps and walkways and any type of shoreline stabilization. Examples of major shoreline alterations include, but not limited to: marinas, community docks, bridges, or aerial crossings. Visit the 26a jurisdiction page for more information on if the proposed location and activity type require a permit.
Every lake has different ruling for shorelines and regulation different elevations. Here is an example of the ruling on Watts Bar Lake for TVA owned shorelines. The TVA property begins at the 745’ msl contour elevation line. TVA has certain (land) flowage rights to the 750’ contour elevation. Therefore any construction below the 750 line requires review and permission (26a permit) from the TVA. TVA will not issue permits for enclosed structures below the 750 line such as a shed, garage, or residence nor anything integral to a residence such as a drive, patio, swimming pool, deck can cross or cantilever over the 750 line.
For more information on shoreline construction visit the TVA website here:
https://www.tva.com/environment/shoreline-construction-permits
Shoreline Construction FAQ (tva.com)
TVA 26a Guidelines
https://www.tva.com/environment/shoreline-construction-permits/section-26a-guidance
Application Instructions
https://www.tva.com/environment/shoreline-construction-permits/application-instructions
Other states:
For some guidance on what the regulations may be in your state, visit “Tree removal regulations by state”
Originally posted by Scott Freerksen “The Lake Guy”
Reposted by Mike Hogan, Lakefront Living Realty, TN