Zoning

{
  "id": "MLC-T-ENV-030719",
  "term": "Zoning",
  "field": "Environment",
  "definition": "1. Zoning is the exercise of the civil authority of a municipality to regulate and control the character and use of property.\n\n2. In general, the demarcation of a planning area by ordinance into zones and the establishment of regulations to govern the use of the land (commerci- al, industrial, residential, type of resi- dential, etc.) and the location, bulk, height, shape, use, and coverage of structures within each zone. (Abrams 1971)\n\n3. Regulations and laws that define how property in specific geographic zones can be used for residential or commercial purposes, and may also regulate lot size, placement, bulk (or density) and the height of structures.\n\n4. Zoning codes are developed to regulate the location and type of development in a given area. Zoning can determine the land use of a particular location, such as residential, commercial or industrial.\n\n5. Most land has been delegated to various zones by a region's local government and building department officials (at the city, county, or state level [occasionally]). The zones control types of land use, such as agricultural, residential, commercial, and industrial, and include subcategories. Each type of zoning carries its own specific permitting restrictions, such as building height and property line offsets (required separation distance).",
  "subject": "Land, waste and cleanup",
  "references": [
    "Waste and Cleanup Risk Assessment Glossary",
    "USDA Forest Service Wildland Planning Glossary",
    "Resilience and Adaptation in New England (RAINE) Glossary",
    "Adapted from School Siting Guidelines Glossary",
    "DOE Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, Small Wind Guidebook Glossary at https://windexchange.energy.gov/small-wind-guidebook"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/environment/zoning/"
}