Orangeburg County, SC Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)

Orangeburg County protects agriculture primarily through its zoning code rather than a standalone nuisance-immunity statute. Zoning Ordinance Section 1.2 states that the FA Forest Agricultural District's classification is meant "to conserve, sustain, and protect agricultural areas," citing the retention of open lands, woodlands and farmlands as essential to clean air, water, wildlife and a balanced environment, and calling the area's agricultural lands and farming operations even more essential from an economic perspective. The companion Rural Community (RC) district is written to sustain rural-community values while keeping land uses compatible with farming neighbors.

Section 2.3's Table 1 use schedule turns that intent into enforceable numbers. Agricultural Production, Crops (NAICS 111) is a permitted, by-right use ("P") in the FA and RC districts as well as Commercial General (CG) and Business/Industrial (BI), but is not permitted ("N") in the RS, RG, RO or CN districts, meaning row crops and similar farming cannot be sited inside the county's residential, office or neighborhood-commercial zones. Related agricultural categories, including livestock, poultry, forestry and equine operations, follow the same FA/RC pattern, while Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations require a conditional-use permit under Section 3.1 because of their more intensive impact. The Zoning Administrator, housed in the Department of Community Development, administers the district map and Table 1 and issues the certificates of zoning compliance a landowner needs before converting farmland to another use.

Because the FA and RC districts are purpose-built to sustain farming, a landowner farming inside either one is operating exactly as the district intends and does not need a conditional-use approval for ordinary crop or livestock production. Moving the same operation into a residential or neighborhood-commercial district, however, falls outside Table 1's permitted list entirely.