Cherokee Reservoir Land Management Plan

Reservoir Land Management Plans (RLMPs) effectively guide land use approvals, private water use facility permitting and resource management decisions on TVA-managed public land. Cherokee RLMP was approved by the TVA Board of Directors in July 2001.

Cherokee Reservoir is an impoundment of the Holston River formed by Cherokee Dam, which is located at Holston River mile 52.3. Cherokee Reservoir is situated in Jefferson, Grainger, Hamblen and Hawkins counties in East Tennessee.

Cherokee Reservoir is a popular recreation destination with campgrounds and hiking trails. The Cherokee Cross Country Trail offers views of the dam and lake and provides access to developed recreation facilities at the dam reservation. There is one trail that is about 4.5-mile long in two loops, and a paved trail section that is accessible to all.

Scope

The scope of the Cherokee RLMP is 8,186.6 acres of TVA public land. The Cherokee RLMP contains a regional overview, information about the environment around the reservoir and descriptions of each parcel of land. The reservoir property is divided into 149 parcels, and each parcel is assigned a single land use allocation zone. Descriptions of the allowable land uses within each land planning zone are available here.

Cherokee Reservoir Land Management Plan (PDF)

Maps

Use the GIS Viewer Map to find individual parcels and land use allocations for TVA reservoir property.  Click on individual parcels to find out more information about a piece of TVA property.  Please note that parcel descriptions are included in the interactive map viewer for convenience, but may have been altered from the original description due to character length restrictions.  Please reference the appropriate Reservoir Land Management Plan for the complete parcel descriptions.  Also, please note that parcel descriptions are representative of the time in which the plans were written; some information may be out of date such as available facilities or names of commercial operations.

Download Maps (PDF)

View Larger Map

How to Use the Viewer Map (PDF)

Allocation Changes

After approval of an RLMP by TVA, all future uses of TVA public lands on that reservoir must then be consistent with the allocations within the RLMP. In accordance with TVA policies and guidelines, allocation changes are only allowable under limited circumstances. The attachment at the link below describes the land use allocation changes that have occurred on Cherokee Reservoir since the 2001 RLMP was completed.

Allocation Changes (PDF)

Land Allocation Acreage

TVA land around Cherokee Reservoir has been allocated for certain land
uses as summarized in the table below.

^*Zone 1 is Non-TVA Shoreland with TVA land rights and does not change as a result of the lands planning process.

Environmental Review

TVA’s land planning methodology incorporates the environmental review process established under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA requires federal agencies to consider the effects of their proposed projects on the human and natural environment before final decisions are made.

Cherokee Reservoir Environmental Review (PDF)

It is important to note that RLMPs are programmatic plans that designate potential allowable land uses as defined in the land use zone definitions and do not involve specific land actions. TVA would complete an appropriate site-specific environmental review prior to proposed development or activity on TVA public land.