Off-Grid Living in Campbell County, South Dakota

I'll be upfront: Campbell County, South Dakota is one of the harder places I've researched, simply because the county doesn't appear to run a public website with planning, building, or health department pages. That's not unusual for a county this small (population under 1,400), but it means a lot of what follows is "here's the state baseline" plus "call the courthouse to confirm," rather than a tidy set of county rules.

Zoning. As of a 2019 news report, Campbell County had no zoning ordinance whatsoever, a county commissioner is quoted saying "we have no regulations at all." At that time the county hired the Northeast Council of Governments (NECOG) to help draft zoning rules in response to a wind-farm proposal. South Dakota state law (SDCL 11-2) allows counties to adopt zoning, but doesn't require it. Whether Campbell County has since adopted a permanent ordinance, I can't confirm, you'll need to call the county directly.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. I found nothing on tiny homes, RV living, or minimum house size at the county level. Given the apparent lack of a full zoning ordinance, unincorporated Campbell County likely has few restrictions here, but that's an inference, not a confirmed rule. The small towns in the county (Mound City, Artas, Herreid, Pollock) could each have their own separate town rules that I couldn't locate on any official code host.

Building permits. South Dakota has no statewide mandatory building code; the state says local jurisdictions choose whether to adopt one (and if they do, it must align with the 2021 International Building Code). Many small rural counties simply don't enforce a building code. I found no Campbell County page confirming or denying a permit requirement.

Septic systems. This one's on firmer ground: septic systems statewide are governed by state administrative rules (ARSD 74:53:01) and must be installed by state-certified installers. Many South Dakota counties handle the local septic permit through their planning office, but I couldn't confirm whether Campbell County does this itself or defers fully to the state Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR).

Greywater and rainwater. Neither has a specific South Dakota statute that I could find, and nothing at the county level either. Domestic water use below certain volume thresholds is exempt from water-right permitting, which suggests small-scale rainwater catchment isn't a permitting trigger, but there's no dedicated rule confirming this.

Wells. Wells are a state matter: DANR licenses well drillers and sets construction standards statewide. Ordinary household wells fall under a domestic-use exemption from water-right permits (the threshold is roughly 25,920 gallons a day). No Campbell County addition to this was found.

Utilities. Nothing in state law bars living off-grid. Given the apparent lack of zoning/building enforcement countywide, it's plausible nobody's checking on grid disconnection, but I can't confirm that as county policy.

Bottom line: state rules for septic and wells are solid ground here. Everything else, especially zoning, permits, and tiny home rules, needs a phone call to the Campbell County Auditor's office to get a real answer.