Property Management Blog

San Diego has been in drought over the past 10 years, but the last four years have been the worst drought in California history. New regulations have been implemented in San Diego County, which will restrict how homeowners can water lawns and landscaping, wash their cars, and run ornamental water features. According to San Diego's new water restrictions laid out by Governor Jerry Brown, water usage must be reduced by 25% across the state of California. In most San Diego County water districts these restrictions have gone from voluntary to mandatory as of July 1, 2015. The water conservation restrictions can be confusing because they may vary slightly between the respective water districts (click here to view) but most follow or are quite similar to state restriction guidelines as follows:

• Lawns may only be watered twice a week, between the hours of 6 pm and 10 am for a maximum of five minutes per station
• No watering of lawns within 48 hours of measurable precipitation
• No use of water to hose off driveways and walkways
• Using only automatic shutoff nozzles for washing cars and watering plants
• Only using decorative fountains that recirculate water
• Immediately fixing leaks within 72 hours

 This may have an impact on our landscaping, particularly our lawns. While we all want our yards stay lush and green, people will be obligated to follow the state and city water conservation mandates and some vegetation and grass areas may suffer due to the new restrictions, especially in the warmer areas of the county further from the coast. In some neighborhoods, there are some people that participate in "water shaming", or telling on the people who aren't following the rules. Alternatively, there are citizens forming groups to educate people about the new policies. With the drought becoming more serious, hopefully the community can unite and strive for better conservation. Things homeowners can do to modify their home's water usage in the long run:

• Use nonpotable water to water lawns (water not of drinking quality that is captured in containment devices or legally utilized from wells or nearby bodies of freshwater)
• Replace plants with drought-resistant species
• Instruct gardeners to cut grass at a longer height to help reduce evaporation
• Reduce size of lawn areas and replace with ground cover, gravel/bark, or artificial turf
• Using underground and drip watering systems
• Installing water-saving or low-flow appliances to conserve

Please don't hesitate to contact North County Property Group regarding San Diego's new water restrictions. 

Follow North County Property Group on our  Blog, Facebook , Twitter,  YouTube , Google Places , LinkedIn , Pinterest  and Yelp!