Moon Lake is an earth dam located in Russell County, Alabama, built in 1946. It carries a High hazard potential classification.
Dam profile
NID height · 40 ft40 ft tall and 900 ft long, taller than 86% of U.S. dams with a recorded height. Height is drawn to scale against a two-story house, about 25 ft; the profile is a generic embankment section and the water level is illustrative.
About Moon Lake
The primary purpose of Moon Lake is recreation. The dam creates a reservoir used for recreational activities such as fishing, boating, and swimming. The dam is owned by Phenix City,alabama (local government). It impounds the Tr-chattahoochee River near Phenix City.
The dam stands 40 feet tall and stretches 900 feet across, and has a maximum storage capacity of 224 acre-feet. Completed in 1946, the structure is well-established, with more than 75 years of service.
This dam carries a high hazard potential classification, which means that a failure or uncontrolled release of water would likely cause loss of human life. This classification reflects the consequences of failure, not the likelihood — it indicates that people live or work in the area downstream. Notably, no emergency action plan is currently on file for this high-hazard dam.
At 40 feet, this dam is taller than 86% of dams nationwide.
Living Downstream
If you live or work downstream of this dam, consider taking these steps: learn your local evacuation routes, check whether your county emergency management office has a dam failure inundation map, and sign up for local emergency alerts. Alabama is the only state with no dam safety program, so there is no state office to contact about this structure; the federal record above is what exists. ASDSO's page on Alabama explains the gap.
Search for dams near your address to see all dams in your area with hazard classifications and safety data.
Location
| State | Alabama |
| County | Russell |
| Nearest City | Phenix City |
| River/Stream | Tr-chattahoochee River |
| Coordinates | 32.49857, -85.00707 |
Physical Characteristics
| Dam Type | Earth |
| NID Height | 40 ft |
| Dam Length | 900 ft |
| Year Completed | 1946 (80 years old) |
Storage & Hydraulics
| NID Storage | 224 acre-ft |
| Max Storage | 224 acre-ft |
| Normal Storage | 155 acre-ft |
| Max Discharge | 50 cfs |
Ownership & Safety
| Purpose | Recreation |
| Owner | Phenix City,alabama |
| Owner Type | Local Government |
| Hazard Classification | High |
| Condition Assessment | Not assessed |
| Emergency Action Plan | No |
Identifiers
| NID ID | AL00864 |
| Federal ID | AL00864 |
| More Info | ASDSO on Alabama (no state dam safety program) |