Off-Grid Living in Washington County, Tennessee

I've been digging into Washington County, Tennessee for readers eyeing off-grid land in that corner of upper East Tennessee, and there's one thing worth flagging right away: unlike a lot of rural TN counties, Washington County is actually zoned. That changes the calculus compared to the "no zoning, do what you want" counties I sometimes cover.

Zoning. The county adopted a countywide Zoning Resolution back in 1984, and it's administered by the Washington County Zoning Office along with the Regional Planning Commission. So before you buy raw land here, check what district it sits in and what the resolution allows for that parcel.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. Per the county's own FAQ, tiny homes are allowed anywhere a single-family dwelling is allowed, but only if they're site-built and on a permanent foundation, meaning a tiny house on wheels doesn't get treated like a permanent dwelling. Barndominium-style homes are allowed too, though alternative construction methods need stamped drawings from a design professional. Manufactured homes get a permit, but it's for zoning compliance only.

Building permits. The county requires permits for buildings, decks, additions, manufactured housing, and grading. You'll need to hand in an application, a septic permit, and a driveway permit as part of that package. This is all handled by the county's Zoning/Building office, but only in unincorporated areas, not in Johnson City, Jonesborough, or Erwin, which run their own permitting.

Septic and composting toilets. This one goes to the state, not the county. Septic permits run through TDEC, the Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation, and the county simply requires that septic permit as part of your building permit application. I found no confirmed composting-toilet or dry-cabin exemption at the county or state level, so assume you need a conventional septic approval.

Greywater. I couldn't find any Washington County ordinance addressing greywater reuse specifically. It falls back to the state's plumbing code framework through TDEC, and I'd call that genuinely unclear until you get a direct answer.

Rainwater harvesting. No county restriction turned up in the zoning resolution, subdivision regs, or FAQ, so this looks permitted under the general state baseline.

Wells. Well drilling in Tennessee runs through the state's Well Driller Supervision Program, which licenses drillers and pump setters statewide. I didn't find a Washington County-specific well ordinance layered on top.

Utilities. The county doesn't issue electrical permits at all, that's the State Fire Marshal's Office. Going off-grid electrically doesn't get you out of the county's building and zoning compliance requirements though, those still apply to any habitable structure.

Bottom line: this is a zoned county with real building-permit teeth, but a lot of the environmental and utility pieces (septic, wells, electrical) are actually state-administered, not county-administered. Always confirm which agency you're dealing with before you assume "the county" is the final word.