Off-Grid Living in Casco, Maine

Casco, Maine is zoned, and that fact shapes just about everything I found while researching off-grid options there. The town's Zoning & Land Use Ordinance (Chapter 215 of the Town Code, adopted by Town Meeting back in 1988 with amendments since) covers multiple districts, including a dedicated Shoreland Zoning chapter if you're anywhere near water. No building can be erected, moved, or occupied unless it conforms to that ordinance, and the Casco Planning Board reviews land use and development applications.

Building permits are required for essentially any structure work, issued by Casco's Code Enforcement Officer (CEO). The town's own code says no building may be erected, moved, added to, or altered without a CEO-issued permit, and your application needs scaled plans showing the lot, existing buildings, the new structure, and your proposed sewage disposal system per the Maine State Plumbing Code. Permits are valid for one year, renewable if you haven't finished. On top of that, Casco enforces the state's Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code (MUBEC), which was updated in early 2025 to the 2021 I-codes, effective for municipal enforcement in spring 2025.

Dwellings, tiny homes, and RVs: I didn't find a Casco-specific tiny-home ordinance. Shoreland zoning touches on RV placement, and general Maine practice treats RVs used short-term differently from those used as a permanent residence with well and septic, but I'd confirm the specifics directly with Casco's CEO rather than rely on a general rule. Manufactured home parks do have a specific provision: they can't be subdivided or sold off in individual lots or condo units without Planning Board approval.

Septic and composting toilets: Casco doesn't write its own septic code, it channels sewage disposal review through the Maine State Plumbing Code (administered by Maine CDC's environmental health division), with the local CEO handling the permit paperwork tied to your building permit.

Greywater and rainwater: I found no Casco-specific ordinance on either. Greywater likely falls under the same state plumbing code umbrella as septic; rainwater harvesting just doesn't appear to be addressed anywhere in the town code I reviewed.

Wells: no Casco-specific well ordinance turned up either. Private well construction and siting is a state-level matter. Casco's code does require utility companies to confirm local permit compliance before connecting service to a new structure, which mostly matters if you're hooking up to public water or a sanitary district, not drilling your own well.

Living off-grid generally: I found no outright ban on disconnecting from utilities in Casco's code. But don't read that as a free pass, any occupied structure still needs its building permit and sewage disposal approval regardless of whether it's tied into the grid.

Bottom line: Casco is a real, actively zoned town with an actively enforced permit process. Off-grid living is possible but it runs through the Code Enforcement Office and, for bigger projects, the Planning Board.