Maine has a long history of people living on the land, and it has become popular as a place for people to live off grid.
Before you start dreaming of your self-reliant life in Maine, though, here’s what you need to know about the laws and whether you’ll be able to live off grid legally.
Want to know more about living off the grid? Read:
- Is It Legal to Live Off Grid in the USA?
- Cost of Living Off The Grid
- Ranked: Best States for Homesteading
Is Living Off-Grid Legal in Maine?
Off-grid living is entirely legal in Maine, and it is also very common. The laws are generally favorable towards off-grid systems. However, virtually all aspects of life in Maine are highly regulated. If you want to live legally off the grid in the state, you must get a permit for everything, meet strict regulations, and deal with inspections.
Maine Zoning Laws and Off-Grid Living
As in all states, local zoning laws in Maine will ultimately determine what you can legally do on your property. While Maine zoning laws are usually very detailed, they typically do not prevent you from living off-grid.
Many areas of Maine are rural, and the zoning laws allow you to farm or make a living from your land.
Shoreland Zoning
One area where you may have issues with zoning laws is if you are in a Shoreland Zone. Under Maine law, shoreland is any area within:
- 250 feet of the normal high-water line of a river, great pond, or saltwater body
- 250 feet of the upland edge of a coastal wetland or freshwater wetland
- 75 feet of the high-water line of certain streams
There are many restrictions on what you can do on shoreland. For example, there are limits on how much vegetation you can clear off your land, maximum home sizes, and setbacks. Remember this before you buy property near a body of water in Maine.
Tiny Homes
Maine zoning laws are very friendly towards the tiny home movement. The state law states that counties must treat manufactured homes the same way they treat single-family dwellings. The law also states that counties cannot make laws requiring manufactured homes to be more than 14 feet wide (which would make many tiny homes illegal). You can read more about the law here.
Mobile Homes
Maine is a surprisingly friendly state for mobile homes. The state law says that local counties cannot require mobile home parks to be larger than a certain size. However, zoning laws can still limit where mobile homes are allowed to be.
If you want more freedom, you’ll likely need to put your mobile home on a permanent foundation and install an approved onsite sewage treatment system.
Off-Grid Electricity in Maine
Off-grid electricity is legal in Maine, and the state has many incentives encouraging residents to move towards renewable technology. Some of the incentives include:
- Renewable energy equipment is excluded from property taxes
- Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans available
- Net metering for grid-tied solar
- Financial incentives for energy-efficient upgrades (see here)
You will need a permit for larger solar energy systems in Maine, but the process is generally relatively easy. Getting a permit for hydropower or wind power is more complicated.
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Off-Grid Water
Maine is water-rich, so getting water for your off-grid property isn’t an issue. The main legal problems you might encounter are getting permits for projects that upset sensitive lands or water bodies.
Surface Water
The state owns all navigable surface water below the low tide mark in Maine. However, the public has the right to use the water. If the water is not navigable, then it can be privately owned.
Under the law, you are generally allowed to use as much surface water as you want so long as it is for domestic use. Most agricultural uses are also permitted under the law. You might get in trouble under the law if you are withdrawing water from a wetland zone.
Diverting Surface Water
Diverting water from a stream or river is sometimes legal in Maine. You will need to get a permit. You will often only get a permit if the system returns the water to its original source – such as digging irrigation canals that lead back to the stream.
You will also need a permit whenever you dig near a water body in Maine. Luckily, the state has made getting these permits for small projects pretty easy, thanks to their Permit-by-rule (PBR) system. The system clearly explains which methods are allowed. You need to submit an application, and if the application isn’t denied, you can start work within 14 days. After completion, you must send photos to the Maine DEP.
Digging a Pond on Your Property
It is legal to dig a pond on your property in Maine. In upland and isolated freshwater wetlands, you usually don’t even need a permit for a small pond. If the pond will be located near a river, stream, brook, or saltwater body, then you will need a permit from the Maine DEP.
Depending on the type of pond, you can apply for the Permit-by-rule or the Irrigation Pond General Permit program (IPGP). Larger ponds may need an individual permit.
You also need an NRPA permit for construction next to rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, wetlands, and protected areas.
Well Water
In Maine, property owners also own the groundwater underneath their land. They are allowed to use as much water as they want, so long as their water use does not infringe on the water rights of neighbors. You do not need to report well water usage in Maine for domestic or agricultural use. Large withdrawals for other uses must be reported to the state.
Wells must be drilled by professionals licensed in the state. The driller must first get approval for the site. After drilling, the well water must be tested. See more info about well water testing here.
Rainwater Harvesting
Rainwater harvesting is legal in Maine and mostly unregulated. You can collect as much rainwater as you want and use it for irrigation or nonpotable uses.
There are no rules preventing you from using rainwater for potable uses, though you’ll have to follow the standards outlined under the state plumbing code.
You’ll still want to check with your local county to see if laws dictate where you can put rain barrels or the types of barrels allowed.
If you want to install underground rain collection tanks, you’ll likely need a building permit.
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Sewage and Waste Removal
Maine is one of the best states regarding off-grid toilet options. The state allows multiple alternative toilets, including pit privies (outhouses), composting, and incinerating toilets. The law is very detailed about what is permitted and the requirements for each system.
While it might seem onerous to meet all these regulations, the detailed rules in Maine can make it easier to get your system approved so you can use it legally.
By contrast, many states still don’t mention compost toilets or alternative systems in their laws. Without clear rules, it ultimately comes down to whether the local inspector approves your project. This isn’t an issue in Maine.
The permitting process can be confusing and expensive, but most inspectors are at least familiar with off-grid systems.
Permits Required for Off-Grid Toilets
You must get a permit for any onsite sewage and wastewater system in Maine. The process involves an application, soil tests, and inspections from the Local Plumbing Inspector (LBI).
Systems are divided into two types:
- Engineered systems: Site evaluator licensed in Maine must provide soil and hole log info, and the system must be designed by a professional engineer.
- Non-engineered systems: Must be designed by a site evaluator licensed in Maine
Primitive Systems (Cabins)
In homes or cabins in Maine without running water, getting approval for an off-grid sewage system is pretty straightforward.
You are allowed to have a “primitive system,” which, under the law, is defined as an alternative toilet (such as a pit privy or compost toilet) and a small area for dumping greywater.
All water and wastewater must be hand-carried or pumped. You are limited to three greywater fixtures. Even with primitive systems, you still need approval and site testing.
Alternative Toilets
Many types of alternative toilets are legal in Maine. This includes compost, incinerating, vault, and chemical toilets. The law is clear, however, that temporary portable toilets (such as camping toilets) are not to be used as permanent toilets. You do not need a site evaluation if the alternative toilet does not discharge waste onto or into the ground.
When using an alternative toilet, you’ll still need a way to dispose of greywater from your home. In most cases, this will mean having a septic system. Maine law has no provisions that reduce the required septic size for homes using alternative toilets. If you don’t want septic, you may be legally allowed to use a greywater disposal system instead.
Compost Toilets Laws in Maine
Compost toilets are legal in Maine. The laws are surprisingly relaxed. You are not required to use an expensive NSF-approved compost toilet. Liquid from the compost toilet can be discharged into a primitive or conventional disposal field. Solid waste from the compost toilet can be composted onsite.
You will still need a permit for a compost toilet in Maine. However, if you already have a plumbing system and the compost toilet is a “replacement fixture,” you won’t need to do another soil test.
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Outhouses/Latrines Laws in Maine
Outhouses (called “pit privies” in the law) are legal in Maine. You will need a permit and must follow depth, setbacks, and design regulations. If you have running water in your home, you must also get a permit for a greywater waste system or dispose of greywater in a septic system.
Greywater Recycling and Reuse Laws
Maine law allows greywater recycling systems for nonpotable uses such as flushing toilets. The state also allows you to dispose of greywater in fields, though the water usually must be treated with an effluent filter first. You will need to have a licensed site evaluator apply for a “subsurface wastewater disposal system” and get a permit. The greywater system cannot share any components of the main system.
Almost all types of greywater are allowed in disposal fields, EXCEPT:
- Blackwater/wastewater
- Laundry waste: This must be disposed of in a conventional sewage treatment system or its own disposal field.
- Hot tub water: This cannot be disposed of in any system utilized for other wastewater. However, you can make a disposal field specifically for the hot tub water.
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Do you live off-grid in Maine? Let us know about your experience in the comments section below.
https://www.maine.gov/decd/sites/maine.gov.decd/files/inline-files/landusemanual2010.pdf
https://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/17/title17sec2808.html
https://www.maine.gov/dep/land/nrpa/ip-irrig.htm
https://extension.umaine.edu/publications/2376e/
https://lldc.mainelegislature.org/Open/Rpts/hc107_m2u5_1988.pdf
https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Wiki/access:me
https://mwua.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/GW-availability-ownership-and-rights-in-Maine-2-11-19.pdf
https://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/38/title38sec480-B.html
https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/environmental-health/plumb/powerpoint/2012BasicInstallerTraining.pdf
https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/environmental-health/plumb/policies/policy03.htm
https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/environmental-health/plumb/powerpoint/HCPC_2012_AlternativeSystems.pdf
Great post, most of the info seems correct when I check it. Adding sources/links to the laws would make it even better eg for ground water https://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/38/title38sec404.html – is agricultural use of groundwater limited?
Here you can see which wells are permitted by rule and which ones count as “significant groundwater wells” and require a permit: https://www.maine.gov/dep/land/nrpa/index.html