Erie County sets no countywide beekeeping ordinance. Hive placement and colony limits are decided by each town, city, or village zoning code, while New York State registration of apiaries is handled by the Department of Agriculture and Markets, not the county.
Beekeeping in Erie County is regulated at the municipal level, and there is no county apiary section. Each town, city, or village zoning code decides whether hives are a permitted accessory use, in which districts, how many colonies a lot may hold, and what setbacks or flyway-barrier requirements apply; urban municipalities such as Buffalo address beekeeping through zoning, while rural towns treat it as an agricultural use. At the state level, honeybees are regulated by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets apiary program, which conducts inspections and manages disease control, but that is a state, not county, function. Because Erie County has no beekeeping ordinance, keepers should confirm hive rules with their municipal zoning office.
Placing hives contrary to local zoning is a municipal zoning violation enforced by the town or city code office; state apiary disease and inspection matters are handled by NY Ag and Markets, not by Erie County.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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