Rainwater harvesting is legal in Horry County. Neither the county nor South Carolina restricts capturing rooftop rainwater in barrels or cisterns for landscape use, and the state actively promotes rain barrels for stormwater and conservation. Simple outdoor rain barrels need no county permit.
There is no Horry County ordinance prohibiting or limiting residential rainwater harvesting, and South Carolina places no restriction on collecting rainwater from your own roof. State agencies, including SC DHEC and Clemson Extension, promote rain barrels as a stormwater best-management practice, which is especially relevant on the flood-prone Grand Strand. A basic rain barrel or cistern used for outdoor irrigation generally requires no county permit. Any potable or indoor plumbing connection, or a large cistern tied into a building's plumbing, must meet the South Carolina building and plumbing codes and may need a permit through Horry County Code Enforcement. Systems should be screened and covered to avoid creating a mosquito-breeding nuisance under the county's nuisance provisions. HOA covenants may regulate
Rainwater harvesting itself is not a county violation and carries no penalty. A neglected, uncovered container that breeds mosquitoes could be addressed as a nuisance, and an unpermitted plumbing tie-in would be a building-code issue rather than a landscaping offense.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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See how Horry County's rainwater harvesting rules stack up against other locations.
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