Chapel Hill, NC Landscaping Rules: Rainwater Harvesting (2026)

Section 3.11.2.7.J of the Land Use Management Ordinance sets the rule for setback encroachments, the narrow list of features allowed to intrude into an otherwise required setback. Among the low impact stormwater management features the section permits into the first 2 feet of a minimum front setback are rain barrels or cisterns six feet or less in height, along with planter boxes, bioretention areas, and similar features approved by the town manager. The same features may also encroach into a side interior or rear setback, as long as the installation stays at least 2 feet from the vertical plane of the lot line.

Separately, Chapter 23 of the Chapel Hill Code of Ordinances, the town's water conservation article administered with the Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA), defines a cistern in section 23-61 as a tank typically located underground for storing rainwater collected from rooftops, and a rain barrel as a tank typically located on the ground beneath a roof drainage system for the same purpose. Section 23-66 makes it OWASA's stated policy to publicize methods of collecting and storing harvested water in appropriate devices, such as rain barrels and cisterns, and to encourage residents to use harvested rainwater and reclaimed water for indoor and outdoor purposes where allowable and practical, as a voluntary, year-round conservation measure separate from the mandatory spray-irrigation schedule the same chapter imposes on OWASA customers.