Water Ordinance Affects Landscape Projects

Amador County, California, will enact an ordinance to help solve the problem of water wasted due to lavish watering practices, poorly designed or maintained landscapes, and inefficient irrigation technology. The Local Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance will govern the future of residential and commercial development as well as affect landscape renovation plans for current property owners who live in the county, located southeast of Sacramento.

The ordinance is modeled on language from Assembly Bill 1881, which requires increased usage of irrigation technology to solve common problems. The ordinance, which takes effect on January 1, 2010, only applies to single-family residences that are installed by developers with gardens larger than 2,500 square feet, and applies to existing single family homes only where the landscaped area is more than 5,000 square feet and is undergoing a renovation.

Although the law doesn’t apply to the development of soccer fields or golf courses, it does require rationing the amount of water applied to public recreational turf.