Off-Grid Living in Sharon, New Hampshire

Sharon, New Hampshire is a small, zoned town, and that surprises some people who assume rural NH towns are unregulated. I want to walk through what I found in the town's own Zoning and Building Ordinance and in New Hampshire state rules, and be upfront about where the research runs out.

Zoning. Sharon is zoned, operating under authority granted by state law (RSA 672-677) but adopted and enforced locally through its own Zoning and Building Ordinance, administered by the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Adjustment. The town has a Rural Residential district with real dimensional standards (setbacks, lot size), and the ordinance leans toward protecting open space and restricting development on wetlands. Don't assume raw land here is a blank slate, it isn't.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. I could not find a specific tiny-home or RV clause in the sections of the ordinance I reviewed. The ordinance does define what makes a lot "buildable" (size, frontage, setbacks, sewage disposal capability), but whether an RV or tiny house on wheels counts as a dwelling isn't spelled out in what I found. I'd call this genuinely unclear, confirm directly with the Planning Board or Select Board before you buy or move anything onto land.

Building permits. Sharon issues its own building permits, and it ties that permit to proving the lot is "buildable," meaning sewage disposal capability has to be demonstrated first. This is a local requirement, not just a state pass-through.

Septic and composting toilets. This is state territory. New Hampshire DES's Subsurface Systems Bureau requires an approved individual sewage disposal system (ISDS) for any structure with plumbed fixtures and a water supply, full stop. Composting or incinerating toilets are allowed in concept under DES rules, but DES doesn't permit them itself, it defers to the town's Local Health Officer to confirm they're allowed locally, and a composting toilet cannot replace a septic system if there are also plumbed fixtures in the building.

Greywater and rainwater. I found no Sharon-specific ordinance on either. Rainwater harvesting appears to fall under the general state-adopted building code with no added local restriction I could locate. Greywater reuse is unclear, treat it as unconfirmed and ask the town and DES directly.

Wells. No Sharon-specific well restriction turned up; well construction and licensing is handled at the state level, with the town's role limited to confirming a lot has adequate sewage/water capability before issuing a building permit.

Going off-grid on utilities. You can go off-grid for power, but you can't dodge wastewater rules. If your structure has plumbing, state law says you need an approved ISDS or an alternative confirmed with the Local Health Officer, there's no statewide holding-tank workaround. Combine that with Sharon's own building-permit-tied-to-buildability rule, and it's clear the town and state work together here.

Bottom line: Sharon is more regulated than its size suggests. Call before you plan.