Rainwater harvesting is legal in Pennsylvania and Delaware County has no ban. The county and its municipalities generally encourage rain barrels and cisterns as stormwater best practices, though large systems tied to a building can trigger local plumbing or stormwater-management review.
Pennsylvania places no statewide restriction on collecting rainwater, and Delaware County has no countywide rain-barrel prohibition. County stormwater and watershed programs, and the PA DEP's Act 167 stormwater-management planning, actively promote rain barrels, rain gardens and cisterns to reduce runoff. Municipal ordinances adopted under Act 167 and the Municipalities Planning Code may require that any harvesting system tied into a building's plumbing meet the PA Uniform Construction Code, and larger cisterns used for stormwater credit may need engineering review. Simple garden rain barrels used for irrigation are normally unregulated.
There is generally no penalty for using a rain barrel. Problems arise only if a system creates a cross-connection to potable plumbing without required backflow protection, or if a stormwater facility is built without a municipally required permit under local
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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Delaware County parks are open to the public only from dawn to dusk (exception by permit only). No one may remain in a county park after hours unless authori...
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Delaware County has no light-trespass ordinance. Whether a neighbor's floodlight spilling onto your property is a violation depends on your municipality's li...
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Delaware County has no countywide dark-sky ordinance. Outdoor-lighting and shielding rules are set by each borough or township through its zoning or subdivis...
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Delaware County does not regulate yard-sale signs on private property. Temporary garage-sale signs are governed by your borough or township sign ordinance, w...
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Delaware County has no sign ordinance for private property. Political-sign rules (size, number, how long before and after an election) are set by your boroug...
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Delaware County sets no tiny-home rule. Whether a tiny house on a foundation is allowed is decided by your municipality's zoning ordinance, and it must meet ...
See how Delaware County's rainwater harvesting rules stack up against other locations.
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