Land & Lot Clearing · Reynolds Lake Oconee
Land clearing for homesites and multi-acre parcels at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greene County, planned around the septic area and Georgia Power's buffer.
- Lake Oconee & Lake Sinclair
- Residential & commercial
- 10% off: military & first responders
Get a free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620The short answer
What does land clearing at Reynolds Lake Oconee involve?
Clearing a Reynolds homesite means taking out only what the house, drive and septic area need, keeping machines out of Georgia Power's 25-foot buffer, and getting Greene County's erosion permit when the work triggers it. Greene is outside EPD's summer burn ban, yet chipping or hauling debris is usually the cleaner choice behind the gate.↗↗↗
Reviewed by A Class Septic Services · Last updated
Local facts
Clearing ground at Reynolds: what is on record
Each row links to the agency, code or publisher it comes from. Tap a source to check it yourself.
| Topic | What it says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Scale of the place | Reynolds describes 12,000 acres of lakefront property and eight championship golf courses | Reynolds Lake Oconee (official site) |
| Larger raw parcels | The Homesteads: multi-acre family parcels on the east shore beside Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds, along Rock Fall Loop | Reynolds Lake Oconee: The Homesteads release |
| Golf-side homesites | Fenmoor homesites sit between the 14th and 15th holes of the Steve Smyers course, near the Reynolds Parkway gate | Reynolds Lake Oconee: Fenmoor homesite release |
| Summer burn ban | Greene County is not among the 54 counties in EPD's May 1 to September 30 open-burning ban for 2026 | GA EPD press release, Apr. 29, 2026: Annual Ban on Open Burning |
| Erosion permit triggers in Greene | More than 1 acre disturbed, work within 200 feet of state waters, or a lot in a common development begun on or after August 2000 | Greene County, GA: Erosion Control Permit Requirements |
The Reynolds Lake Oconee story
Two kinds of Reynolds clearing job
Most Reynolds clearing is surgical. A golf-side homesite like the Fenmoor lots between the 14th and 15th holes has neighbors, a fairway and a finished street on every side, so the work is a house pad, a drive and a utility or septic corridor cut out of the trees, with the specimen hardwoods fenced and left. Debris leaves on a truck the same week.↗
The Homesteads release is a different animal. Multi-acre parcels on the east shore near Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds can carry a barn site, pasture, long drives and a septic field, and once more than an acre is opened up, Greene County wants an erosion and sediment control plan, a land disturbance permit and a notice of intent filed with EPD.↗↗
Either way, the septic area gets cleared with care. Georgia's rules want tank backfill free of stumps and voids, and if grading for the house changes the depth a field will sit at, the soil evaluation has to be redone. Clearing the field area by hand-cutting and grinding, rather than ripping roots out with a dozer blade, keeps the soil the county approved.↗↗
Most Reynolds clearing is surgical.
More about Reynolds Lake Oconee
The shoreline strip stays green
Lakefront Reynolds lots end at Georgia Power's project boundary, and the 25 feet nearest the water is a vegetative buffer. Georgia Power allows no mechanical clearing there, meaning no grubbing and no change to the ground's contour, without its written approval and the county's buffer permits first.↗
The penalty for getting it wrong is steep. On an undeveloped lot, Georgia Power can require a revegetation plan, pull a dock at the owner's expense and stop issuing lake-use permits. Where a tree on its land truly blocks a home or septic installation, it will consider removal, with one native tree replanted for each one cut.↗
Lakefront Reynolds lots end at Georgia Power's project boundary, and the 25 feet nearest the water is a vegetative buffer.
What it costs
What clearing tends to cost
Land clearing, typical job
$1,397-$6,176 (average $3,780)
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: Land Clearing Cost (updated Jun 17, 2026), 2026
One heavily forested acre
$3,600-$5,600
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: Land Clearing Cost (updated Jun 17, 2026), 2026
Grading and leveling after clearing
$1,000-$3,300 extra
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: Land Clearing Cost (updated Jun 17, 2026), 2026
Single stump removal
$195-$609 (average $369)
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: Tree Stump Removal Cost (updated Jun 19, 2026), 2026
What moves the price
These are third-party typical market ranges, not our prices. Every job is quoted after we see it — estimates are free.
Free estimate: (678) 863-5620- 01How many trees are fenced and kept versus taken
- 02Haul distance for logs and chips out of the gate
- 03Whether the parcel crosses Greene's one-acre or 200-foot permit lines
- 04Stump grinding inside the future septic area
FAQ
Reynolds land clearing questions
Straight answers, with the rule or record behind them. Still unsure? Call and ask the crew that digs.
(678) 863-5620Can debris from a Reynolds lot be burned?
State rules allow it in Greene County year-round because Greene is not in the summer ban, but a land-clearing burn still needs a Forestry Commission permit, and community rules may say otherwise. Chipping and hauling avoid the smoke entirely.
Source: GA EPD press release, Apr. 29, 2026: Annual Ban on Open Burning
How close to the lake can trees come down?
Nothing within Georgia Power's 25-foot buffer or on its land without written approval. Inside your own lot line and outside the buffer, county permits and community review govern.
Source: Georgia Power: Lake Oconee Shoreline Guidelines (PDF)
When does a Reynolds clearing job need a Greene land disturbance permit?
When it opens more than an acre, comes within 200 feet of state waters such as a creek or spring-fed pond, or sits in a common development begun on or after August 2000.
Source: Greene County, GA: Erosion Control Permit Requirements
Is there a waiting period after the EPD notice of intent?
Greene notes a state-mandated 14 days after a notice of intent is filed through GEOS before it issues permits, so file early.
Source: Greene County, GA: Erosion Control Permit Requirements
Why not just bulldoze the septic area clean?
Because roots, stumps and scraped soil change what the county evaluated. If grading alters the depth a field will sit at, the soil evaluation and perc tests have to be redone.
Source: GA DPH Manual for On-Site Sewage Management Systems (March 2026), Section B: General Site Provisions
Do you clear the larger Homesteads parcels too?
Yes. Lots cleared, debris removed, trunks taken out and driveways prepared are all on our list, at homesite scale or across several acres.
Nearby areas
Land clearing elsewhere on the lake
Sources
Where these facts come from
Rules, costs and local facts on this page link to the agency, code or publisher that states them. Cost figures are third-party market ranges, not our prices — estimates are free.
Reviewed by A Class Septic Services · Last updated
- 1Georgia Power: Lake Oconee Shoreline Guidelines (PDF)
- 2Greene County, GA: Erosion Control Permit Requirements
- 3GA EPD press release, Apr. 29, 2026: Annual Ban on Open Burning
- 4Reynolds Lake Oconee (official site)
- 5Reynolds Lake Oconee: The Homesteads release
- 6Reynolds Lake Oconee: Fenmoor homesite release
- 7Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 511-3-1-.05, Septic Tanks (LII)
- 8GA DPH Manual for On-Site Sewage Management Systems (March 2026), Section B: General Site Provisions
- 9HomeAdvisor: Land Clearing Cost (updated Jun 17, 2026)
- 10HomeAdvisor: Tree Stump Removal Cost (updated Jun 19, 2026)
Ready when you are
Clearing a Reynolds homesite? Mark the keepers first.
Send the plat and a few photos. We will flag what has to go for the house, drive and septic area, plan the haul-out, and quote the job. Military members and first responders get 10% off.
(678) 863-5620- Lake Oconee & Lake Sinclair
- Residential & commercial
- 10% off for military & first responders
Free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620