Fall is the perfect time to yank those thirsty lawns and install drought-tolerant landscapes with the help of cooler days and major financial incentives.
Homeowners and businesses in San Diego County can receive between $2 and $4 per square foot for removing grass and replacing it with low water-use plants that are better suited to withstand the hot and dry conditions that continue to hammer the West.
Fall is the perfect time to yank those thirsty lawns and install drought-tolerant landscapes with the help of cooler days and major financial incentives.
Homeowners and businesses in San Diego County can receive between $2 and $4 per square foot for removing grass and replacing it with low water-use plants that are better suited to withstand the hot and dry conditions that continue to hammer the West.
All customers are eligible for the base rebate of $2 per square foot, but other agencies offer additional funding, including the City of San Diego and the County of San Diego.
In addition, a newly signed state law exempts local rebates for grass replacement from state income tax, ensuring more dollars can be spent creating beautiful and functional WaterSmart yards.
“Drought conditions make it imperative to boost water conservation in San Diego County and across the state,” said Sandra L. Kerl, general manager of the San Diego County Water Authority. “Using California tax incentives and regional rebates to install WaterSmart landscapes is a clear winner for stretching water supplies both today and for generations to come.”
San Diego County residents can take advantage of savings on water-saving technologies such as high-efficiency clothes washers & toilets, rain barrels — and can schedule free #WaterSmart checkups to make their properties more water-efficient.https://t.co/yFi2DgXixS
— San Diego County Water Authority (@sdcwa) October 16, 2022
California is entering a fourth straight year of drought, which climatologists say is one of the worst in state history. To make matters worse, a 22-year “megadrought” has impacted the Colorado River, which is the state’s other key source of California water supply. The impacts of a hotter, drier climate make replacing turfgrass with low water-use plants a key part of conserving our most precious natural resource.
For the past 30 years, the Water Authority and its member agencies have promoted water-use efficiency through a variety of tools such as rebates, classes, and other resources available across their service areas. Overall per capita water use in the county is down more than 40% since 1990, and the vast majority of county residents believe that water-use efficiency is a civic duty.
Help conserve water by transforming your outdoor spaces into a WaterSmart Landscape. @sdcwa offers free do-it-yourself workshops taught local landscape design professionals. You can now watch recordings of past workshops too! https://t.co/4U0zuAc7gO pic.twitter.com/jrnELsKNsk
— San Diego County Sustainability (@SDCoSustainable) October 16, 2022
Landscaping upgrades are particularly important because more than half of all residential water use is outdoors. Rebates and incentives available to residents and businesses in San Diego County are at: www.sdcwa.org/your-water/conservation/.
Information on rebates and other incentives for residents and businesses to reduce water use and increase water-efficiency: https://t.co/1LnJNWpVAo @bewaterwiseh2o @saveourwater @CityofSanDiego @SanDiegoCounty
— San Diego County Water Authority (@sdcwa) October 16, 2022
(Editor’s Note: The San Diego County Water Authority sustains a $240 billion regional economy and the quality of life for 3.3 million residents through a multi-decade water supply diversification plan, major infrastructure investments and forward-thinking policies that promote fiscal and environmental responsibility. A public agency created in 1944, the Water Authority delivers wholesale water supplies to 24 retail water providers, including cities, special districts and a military base.)
Angelenos can stock up again on gallons of recycled water to irrigate their trees, plants and lawns — and free of charge through a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power program.
Mayor Eric Garcetti announced the reopening of two recycled water fill stations Thursday at the Los Angeles-Glendale Water Reclamation Plant and the L.A. Zoo parking lot.
They’ve been part of the American Dream, Southern California style for decades. But verdant lawns are disappearing more and more thanks to shrinking water supplies.
The Golden State is now in its third year of drought. A study published by the journal Nature Climate Change in February found this is the worst drought in what is now the western United States in 1,200 years.
After years of on-again-off-again drought conditions and decades of precarity relying on imported water, Southern California has instituted major limitations on how residents can use water. Within weeks, residents will only be allowed to irrigate their yards once a week. Lush lawns and abundant flower gardens, your days may be numbered.
This is likely just the start.
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo renewed calls for residents to conserve water and proposed outdoor watering restrictions Wednesday as California’s ongoing drought deepens.
The climate change cabal in Sacramento is ignoring some extremely low hanging fruit in their bid to protect us from ourselves.
The reason they don’t see it is simple. It doesn’t involve raising taxes, rewarding corporations or disruptor greenies they align with, nor does it destroy jobs.
The California Legislature needs to ban grass lawns for front yards as well as general commercial development for all new building projects.
The recent downgrade in the forecast for the flow of water in the Colorado River should be a death punch to the proposal to build a new pipeline out of Lake Powell. The pipeline was already a major threat to Las Vegas and much of the rest of the Southwest; now the threat risk is heading off the charts.
The proposal would drain 28 billion gallons of water per year from Lake Powell to St. George, Utah, and the surrounding area. That’s a huge amount of water — more than a quarter of what Nevada is allotted annually from Lake Mead (97.8 billion gallons).
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
