Alabama Power Shoreline Permits on Smith Lake, Alabama

Almost any riprap, seawall or dock work on Smith Lake starts with an Alabama Power shoreline permit. This page sets out what needs one, the fees in Alabama Power's current Smith Lake guidelines, what to send with the application, how long review takes, how repair is treated differently from new work, and how the Army Corps' programmatic permit fits in.

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Who decides what on Smith Lake

Smith Lake is an Alabama Power hydroelectric reservoir licensed as FERC Project No. 2165. Three reviews can apply to one shoreline job:

Alabama Power Shoreline Management issues the shoreline permit. The Smith Lake office is listed as Warrior River – Smith, 5558 Curry Highway, Ste 3, in Jasper, phone 205-384-7385.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District, covers riprap, bulkheads and other work in the water through programmatic general permits written for Alabama Power reservoirs.
Alabama Power's environmental review looks at each application with federal protections in mind, and shorelines identified as potential flattened musk turtle habitat have their own construction method and season.

What needs a permit

Alabama Power's guidelines list the lake's full summer level as the 510-foot contour, with Alabama Power's fee ownership at 510 feet and its flood easement at 522 feet. Its permits page puts the rule this way: if you "wish to repair, build or modify anything in either the lakebed or the Alabama Power Flood easement," you will need a permit. It also says "All work (besides painting and pressure washing) in the lakebed" or in the flood easement could require one.

That covers new riprap, more stone on old riprap, seawall repairs and rebuilds, new docks, dock repairs and lifts. If you're not sure whether a small job counts, ask the shoreline office before anyone starts.

It's a busy program. In a 2024 update on the Smith Lake shoreline plan, Alabama Power wrote that "From 2018 through the end of 2023, Alabama Power issued 2,936 permits," and that it is in the FERC process "to update its Shoreline Management Plan for the Warrior River Project-Smith Development (FERC No. 2165)." Rules can change when that plan is updated, which is one more reason to work from the current guidelines.

The fees

The fees below are from Section A-4 of Alabama Power's Smith Lake guidelines, revised July 15, 2025. Each is non-refundable.

Fee	Amount	What it covers
General Construction Fee	$400	New residential shoreline construction, such as new riprap, a new seawall or a new dock. Elevated structures are billed separately.
Elevated Structure Construction Fee	$500	An elevated single-family structure, which the guidelines handle in their own section and require to sit at least 25 feet back from full pool.
General Repair Fee	$200	Shoreline structure repair "of a substantial degree," including "adding rip rap to an existing rip rap footprint."
Permit Modification Fee	$100	A modification, revision or change to a permit you've applied for.
Unauthorized Construction Fee	$600	Construction done without Alabama Power's approval.
Unauthorized Structure Repair Fee	$400	Repair done without Alabama Power's approval.
Non-Compliance Fee	$800	Applies in some cases where the Permittee already has Alabama Power's written approval; ask the office how it's used.

Repair or new work?

The difference is $200 on the fee, and sometimes more in what's allowed. The guidelines charge the repair fee for repair "of a substantial degree" and name adding riprap within an existing riprap footprint as one example. Alabama Power decides what's substantial. New construction pays $400.

Clearly repair: topping up or resetting stone on riprap that's already there, inside its existing footprint.
Likely new construction: riprap or a seawall where there was none, or extending either along more of your shoreline. Confirm with the office.
Ask first: rebuilding a failed seawall. In identified turtle habitat, Alabama Power says that when a seawall falls into disrepair and reconstruction is required, residents "must use a more natural method to stabilize the shoreline." See turtle-habitat shorelines.
No permit listed: painting and pressure washing.

What to send with the application

The guidelines' initial steps ask the property owner for:

A signed copy of the guidelines.
A copy of the current deed for the property, or the lease if the property is leased.
A copy of a current survey, where Alabama Power decides it needs one to make a decision.
Your contact information: mailing address, phone and email.
The name and contact information of any agent, employee or contractor you authorize or hire.
A sketch of all existing and proposed shoreline structures.
Anything else Alabama Power requires.

Alabama Power's permits page adds "any applicable subdivision ARC/HOA approvals" and asks for a drawing with the dimensions and location of the requested build or repair. Applications go in on the APC Shorelines website or in the APC Shorelines app. Completing the request form "begins this process and does not constitute the issuance of a permit," so nothing should start until the permit itself is issued.

How long it takes, and how long you have

Alabama Power says its Shoreline Management staff make "as many as two to three site visits" for each permit and that the process "can take up to 30 days or more depending on the required reviews." In turtle habitat, the November 1 to March 31 construction window adds a second clock, so apply well before the window opens.

Once issued, the guidelines say "The Permittee will have one year to complete construction and/or other permitted activity." The terms and conditions also address extensions requested before the first year runs out; ask the office how long an extension can be.

The Army Corps programmatic permit

The Corps' Mobile District has issued programmatic general permits (PGPs) for Alabama Power reservoirs in the Coosa, Tallapoosa and Black Warrior basins. Smith Lake is on the Black Warrior system. The one for riprap and seawalls is APCO-PGP-05, "Riprap for Shoreline, Bank, and Channel Protection; Bulkheads and Other Standard Shoreline Protection/Stabilization Devices Roughly Paralleling, and at the Shoreline or Bank."

Verification: "A project specific verification must be obtained for all activities covered under the Alabama Power Company Programmatic General Permits (APCO-PGP) prior to the start of regulated activities." Requests "should be initiated via the APCO website at www.apcshorelines.com."
Riprap: bedding fill below the ordinary high-water mark may not average more than one cubic yard per linear foot; there's no limit on riprap above that mark; filter fabric "shall be considered and may be required."
Bulkheads: a total project length of 1,000 linear feet, following the natural contour; new bulkheads no more than 36 inches waterward of full pool; replacements no more than 24 inches waterward of the failed wall; riprap at the base "where possible."
Not covered: filling wetlands, and groins, jetties or solid structures perpendicular to the shore.
Docks: a general condition requires all floats, existing and proposed, to be "encased or closed cell."

Check the dates. The PGPs took effect January 10, 2022 and are currently set to expire January 9, 2027. The document also says ADEM's water-quality certification of the PGPs "will expire on November 16, 2026" unless extended. Ask Alabama Power whether both are current, and what happens to your request if either lapses or is renewed.

County and subdivision approvals

We didn't find a county permit for shoreline work published by Walker, Winston or Cullman County. That doesn't rule one out, so ask your county before work begins. Subdivision architectural review or HOA approvals, where they exist, go in with the Alabama Power application.

Permit questions

Who signs the Alabama Power application?

The property owner, as Permittee, signs the guidelines. You can list the contractors you authorize or hire as your agents.

Does the contractor's quote include the permit fee?

Sometimes. Ask whether the $400 or $200 fee, the sketch and the application work are in the price or billed separately.

Can work start while the permit is pending?

No. Alabama Power says the request form "does not constitute the issuance of a permit," and the Corps requires its verification "prior to the start of regulated activities." Work done without approval carries the $600 or $400 unauthorized fees.

Is the Corps permit separate paperwork?

The Corps says requests under the Alabama Power PGPs should start on Alabama Power's shoreline website. Ask the shoreline office how the Corps verification is handled for your job.

How this site helps

Call (205) 880-2401 or send a request, and we'll connect you with one independent local contractor who works on Smith Lake. Contractors are responsible for their own licensing, insurance, permits, pricing and warranties.

Sources

Want help getting a job permitted?

Tell us about the shoreline or dock, and we'll pass it to one independent local contractor who works on Smith Lake.