Off-Grid Living in Emery County, Utah

I've been digging into Emery County, Utah for off-grid prospects, and the honest summary is: it's rural and quiet, but it's not a legal free-for-all. There are real layers of oversight from the county, the state, and the local health district that you need to line up before you settle in.

Zoning. Emery County Planning & Zoning administers countywide zoning outside the incorporated towns (Castle Dale, Huntington, Ferron, Green River, Orangeville, Emery, Cleveland each run their own zoning if you're inside city limits). A lot of the private land base sits in a "mining, grazing, and recreation" designation where the county's own general plan materials say permanent residential use isn't a primary use and will be discouraged, though recreational homes fit the plan. The Planning Commission has also specifically discussed things like living in camp trailers and short-term camping, which tells me raw-land occupancy is actively regulated and zone-dependent, not something you can assume is fine everywhere. Confirm your specific parcel's zone before you buy or move onto it.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. The county's building permit checklist calls for dwellings to be at least 800 square feet, which knocks out most wheeled tiny homes and RVs as permanent residences. Manufactured homes have a separate permit packet through Building & Zoning.

Building permits. Emery County Building & Zoning enforces Utah's state-adopted codes (the 2021 IBC/IRC/IPC/IMC/IFGC family, 2020 NEC, 2021 IECC). For unincorporated land, the county wants proof of ownership before permitting, and for many residential permits that means a trust deed or plat showing 10+ acres (ag/storage structures are exempted from the acreage rule but still need ownership proof). You cannot legally occupy a new structure until it passes final inspection and gets a Certificate of Occupancy.

Septic. This isn't handled by the county directly, it goes through the Southeast Utah Health Department (SEUHD), which covers Carbon, Emery, and Grand counties. Onsite wastewater systems need a permit and plan approval under the state rule (R317-4), including a perc test, with design review out of the Price office. Composting toilets aren't addressed anywhere I found, so ask SEUHD directly.

Greywater. No Emery-specific ordinance turned up; it falls under the state's R317-401 framework, administered locally by the same SEUHD office.

Rainwater harvesting. No county rule modifying the state law (Utah Code 73-3-1.5), so the state's permissive baseline applies.

Wells and water rights. Drilling a well means going through the Utah Division of Water Rights (State Engineer) for a water right and Start Card, the same as anywhere in the state. Locally, the Emery Water Conservancy District manages irrigation and culinary water infrastructure and is worth a call if you're near a town system.

Utilities. I could not find a clear county rule spelling out whether a Certificate of Occupancy demands grid hookups or accepts an approved well/septic setup instead. Given the zoning language discouraging permanent residence in some zones, I'd call Building & Zoning and Planning & Zoning directly before assuming off-grid living is a smooth path here.