Off-Grid Living in Pittsburg, New Hampshire

Pittsburg, way up in New Hampshire's North Country, is about as light-touch as it gets when it comes to land use control, and that makes it a magnet for off-grid interest. But "light-touch" doesn't mean "no rules." Let me walk through what I found.

Zoning: there isn't any. Pittsburg is one of only two New Hampshire towns (Clarksville is the other) with no zoning ordinance and no Planning Board under the state's enabling statute, RSA 673:1. That means no dimensional standards, no use districts, nothing telling you where on your own land you can put a structure. The Board of Selectmen handles what little land-use administration exists.

Building: a notification, not a permit process. The Pittsburg Town Office asks that you file a "Building Notification" for any addition to your property, sheds included, with the Selectmen's Office. This is explicitly a heads-up rather than a plan-review or approval system. Even so, you're still on the hook for state-level requirements: septic, well, setbacks, shoreline rules, subdivision law, wiring, plumbing, and fire code. The state building code (RSA 155-A) applies regardless of what the town does or doesn't require locally. I'd call the Town Office directly to get the current form and ask what they actually expect, since some of what's floating around online about this form comes from a third-party permit site rather than Pittsburg's own page.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. With no zoning, there's no local ordinance singling these out. That's promising, but it's not a green light for everything, since state septic, well, and building code rules still apply to whatever you put up.

Septic. New Hampshire DES regulates septic systems (called ISDS) statewide through its Subsurface Systems Bureau, and Pittsburg follows that same regime with no extra local layer found. If your structure has plumbed fixtures, state law (RSA 485-A:32) requires it to connect to a septic system or sewer, no matter your water source. Composting toilets and privies handle human waste only and can't substitute for septic if you've got plumbing.

Greywater and rainwater. I didn't find a dedicated state or town rule for household greywater reuse, so treat that as unclear and confirm with DES. Rainwater harvesting looks fine under the general state code, with nothing town-specific restricting it.

Wells. Private wells fall under the statewide NH Water Well Board licensing system, same as anywhere else in the state; no separate Pittsburg well rule turned up.

Utilities. No zoning or subdivision authority means no hookup mandate was found requiring you to tie into municipal water or sewer, which frankly doesn't exist to speak of in Pittsburg anyway.

Bottom line: Pittsburg gives you a rare unzoned canvas, but state septic, well, and building code obligations don't disappear just because the town has no zoning. Call the Selectmen's Office before you build anything.