Rockingham County, VA Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)
FEMA flood zone rules in Rockingham County, VA, also called floodplain regulations or special flood hazard area (SFHA) rules, determine flood insurance requirements and elevation standards for new construction.
Key Facts
- Coverage area
- FEMA-mapped special flood hazard areas
- Approval required
- Zoning approval before any permit
- Prohibited uses
- Auto graveyards, critical facilities, hazmat storage
- Enforcer
- County floodplain administrator
- Consequence
- Public nuisance abatement; flood insurance withheld
Summary
In unincorporated Rockingham County, no land may be developed and no structure may be located, constructed, reconstructed, enlarged or structurally altered within a FEMA-mapped special flood hazard area except in full compliance with chapter 6D, the county's floodplain management ordinance.
No land shall hereafter be developed and no structure shall be located, relocated, constructed, reconstructed, enlarged, or structurally altered except in full compliance with the terms and provisions of this chapter and any other applicable ordinances and regulations which apply to uses within the jurisdiction of this chapter. ... This chapter shall not create liability on the part of Rockingham County or any officer or employee thereof for any flood damages that result from reliance on this chapter or any administrative decision lawfully made thereunder.
Full Breakdown
2 applies chapter 6D to all privately and publicly owned land identified as a special flood hazard area on the FEMA flood insurance rate map provided to the county. 3 bars any development or structure location, relocation, construction, reconstruction, enlargement or structural alteration in the floodplain except in full compliance with the chapter and other applicable ordinances, while making clear the degree of protection is reasonable but not a guarantee against larger, rarer floods, and that the county bears no liability for flood damage resulting from reliance on the ordinance.
1, all uses, activities and development in a floodplain district, including manufactured home placement, require zoning approval before any permit issues, and site plans must show the base flood elevation, the elevation of the lowest floor, and, for nonresidential floodproofed structures, the floodproofing elevation. 2 bars new automobile graveyards, critical facilities, hazardous-substance storage facilities, and new or expanded auto or manufactured-home sales lots within the special flood hazard area, and requires that any buildable acreage outside the flood hazard area on a parcel be used for new residential construction instead. 1, reviews applications, interprets FIRM boundaries, and can require corrective action for noncompliant structures.
Violations & Fines
Failing to comply with chapter 6D or a floodplain administrator's directive is a violation subject to penalties under § 6D-1.7, cross-referencing the misdemeanor and fine provisions of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code (Sections 104 and 115) and the Zoning Ordinance in chapter 17 for land-use violations; land-disturbing activity violations are penalized separately under chapters 6B and 6C. A noncompliant structure may also be declared a public nuisance and abated as such, and flood insurance may be withheld from structures built in violation of the chapter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I build in a mapped flood zone in Rockingham County?
What uses are banned outright in Rockingham County's floodplain?
Who administers floodplain rules in Rockingham County?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Rockingham County
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