Your permit plan: Dock, pier, lift or boathouse

Chapter 105: your project is a water obstruction

DEP, or your county conservation district if it has Chapter 105 delegation

Under Pennsylvania's Chapter 105 rules, a "body of water" includes any natural or artificial lake or pond, and a "water obstruction" includes a pier, wharf, wall, fill or other structure in, along, across or projecting into it. For ponds and lakes, a structure counts if, at normal pool level, it is in the water or touching the water's edge. The rules cover temporary structures as well as permanent ones. DEP says any change to a pond's cross-section that is not maintenance, such as a new dock, pier or island or making the pond bigger, needs a water obstruction and encroachment permit.

• DEP: Chapter 105 General Permits
• Which conservation districts handle Chapter 105 (map, PDF)

Checked Oct 4, 2026 · Source: 25 Pa. Code § 105.1, Definitions This may be outdated

General Permit 2 (GP-2): small docks and launch ramps

DEP or your delegated county conservation district

Form: GP-2, 3150-PM-BWEW0502 (register through DEP ePermitting, DEP's preferred route)

Fee: $175

General Permit 2 (GP-2) covers the installation, modification and maintenance of small docks of 750 square feet or less and boat launching ramps; other size restrictions may apply. The registration fee in the regulation is $175. Small projects often fit a DEP general permit, but only if they meet every term of it.

What to have ready

• Read the GP-2 permit terms (DEP eLibrary, 3150-PM-BWEW0502) and check your dock fits them before you register.
• Your dock's total area in square feet, and a simple plan of it.
• Who owns the lakebed, and any owner or association approval (see the owner card).

• DEP: Chapter 105 General Permits
• Fee schedule: 25 Pa. Code § 105.13

Checked Oct 4, 2026 · Source: Chapter 105 General Permits This may be outdated