The city of San Diego's turf replacement rebate program will resume Wednesday with the beginning of the new fiscal year, with $1.2 million available for residents who remove their lawn and install native or drought-tolerant landscaping.
"The best way to conserve is to reduce watering outdoors or take advantage of rebates to replace your lawn with drought-tolerant landscaping," Mayor Kevin Faulconer said. "We're all in this together. It's time to change the way we think about water. Let's conserve today for a better tomorrow."
The city of San Diego is operating under a state mandate to reduce water consumption by 16 percent over 2013 levels because of the ongoing drought. On Monday, the City Council tightened water use regulations by cutting the number of days of outdoor irrigation from three per week to two per week, at five minutes per station. The new rules also prohibit watering within 48 hours of measurable rain.
The new restrictions brought San Diego's regulations in line with state and San Diego County Water Authority rules.
According to the city, outdoor irrigation accounts for half of residential water use.
Information about the rebate program is available at wastenowater.org.
