Alpine County, CA Landscaping Rules: Rainwater Harvesting (2026)

There is no Alpine County code provision prohibiting or specially regulating the capture of rainwater for landscape use, and the county's water-related chapters (Wells, Ch. 8.36; Boating and Water Protection, Ch. 8.32) address groundwater and surface-water quality rather than rooftop collection. Rainwater harvesting in California is governed by the statewide Rainwater Capture Act of 2012, which authorizes residential, commercial, and institutional property owners to install and operate rainwater capture systems collecting from rooftops, without a State Water Board water right. The state Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO), which all California local agencies must adopt or exceed, explicitly promotes alternative water supplies including harvested rainwater for irrigating new and renovated landscapes. In practice, simple rain barrels and small cisterns are unregulated in unincorporated Alpine County. Larger above-ground storage tanks, elevated tank stands, or systems plumbed into a home's potable supply can trigger a county building permit or plumbing review through the Community Development/Building Department, and any system must not create a cross-connection with drinking water. Because the county is at high elevation with significant snowfall, residents should also account for freeze protection, but that is a design consideration, not a regulatory one.