Off-Grid Living in West Tisbury, Massachusetts

I've been digging into West Tisbury, Massachusetts for anyone dreaming of a quieter, more self-sufficient life on Martha's Vineyard, and here's what I found, with the caveat that a lot of the fine detail lives in documents I couldn't fully unpack.

Zoning. West Tisbury is not unzoned. The town has a formal zoning bylaw, enacted under the state's Zoning Act (MGL Chapter 40A), that divides the town into districts. The stated intent is to protect the rural, agricultural, and residential character of the town while allowing limited small-business activity. What I couldn't pin down from the excerpts I reviewed are the district-by-district specifics, minimum lot sizes, setbacks, and any agricultural exemptions. That level of detail is in the full bylaw text, and I'd treat any assumption about "how small a lot can be" or "what counts as a home business" as unconfirmed until you check with the Planning Board.

Dwellings, tiny homes, and RVs. I could not confirm whether West Tisbury has specific rules for tiny houses or RV living. The zoning bylaw covers dwellings generally, but I didn't find tiny-house or RV-specific language in what I reviewed. Don't assume either way, ask the Planning Board or Building Department directly.

Building permits. The town runs its own Building Department, which issues permits locally under the Massachusetts state building code (780 CMR). Any structure you build, off-grid or not, is going to go through that local review.

Septic and composting toilets. This is a big one on the Vineyard. Massachusetts regulates on-site wastewater systems through Title 5 (310 CMR 15.000), administered by the state's environmental agency (MassDEP) but enforced locally by the West Tisbury Board of Health. The Board maintains its own Title 5 guidance and issues local installer/hauler permits. Even with a composting toilet, state guidance is clear that greywater from sinks, showers, and washing machines still needs a proper soil absorption system, so composting toilets alone don't get you out of the septic conversation.

Greywater. Restricted in practice, for the reason above: state DEP guidance treats greywater as needing the same kind of treatment as regular wastewater, and I found no West Tisbury-specific allowance carving out a simpler greywater system.

Rainwater harvesting. I found nothing, town bylaw or Board of Health rule, addressing rainwater catchment specifically. That doesn't mean it's banned, it means it's untested territory as far as my research shows. Ask the Board of Health before you build a serious catchment system.

Wells. Private wells are permitted, and the Board of Health actively oversees water quality, including a current PFAS testing and advisory effort in cooperation with the state. If you're on a private well, plan to get familiar with that program.

Off-grid utilities. I didn't find a town-specific bylaw addressing off-grid electrical or solar setups directly. The baseline assumption is that the state building code and local Building Department permitting apply to any electrical or solar installation, same as anywhere else in Massachusetts.

Bottom line: West Tisbury is zoned and locally regulated at every turn, town character protection is clearly a priority here, so anyone planning an off-grid setup should expect to work closely with the Planning Board, Building Department, and Board of Health rather than trying to fly under the radar.