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Palmdale Water District offers cash for water-saving yards

Posted by: Maven on March 14, 2009 at 6:48 am

From the Antelope Valley Press:

People who participate in Palmdale Water District’s newest conservation program can help the agency save water while saving themselves time spent on mowing the lawn.

PWD directors, in a 5-0 vote Wednesday night, approved the Cash For Grass Replacement Program, which would pay water district customers 40 cents for every square foot of turf they convert to xeriscape – a landscape that uses drought-resistant plants and hardscape such as decorative rocks in place of grass.

“They have to put in 60% of water-wise plants,” Claudette Roberts, the agency’s water conservation manager, told water board members.

Plants must be selected from a city list that contains more than 400 varieties, including shrubs such as the Japanese maple and fringed sage, ground covers like the creeping cotoneaster, vines including the primrose jasmine, trees such as the blackbrush acacia, flowers like the desert sand verbena and desert zinnia, and a variety of cacti and succulents.

Customers applying for the program must agree to replace a minimum of 400 square feet of grass with xeriscape, Roberts said. At an estimated average grass replacement of 800 square feet, the rebate will amount to $320.

Though residential and commercial customers can participate in the program, Roberts said residential customers will be given priority, especially homes that typically use at least 65 units a month. Each unit of water equals 100 cubic feet, or 748 gallons. Some 3,000 of PWD’s 26,000 customers fit that category.

Read more from the Antelope Valley Press by clicking here.

March 14, 2009 · Filed Under Southern California

Comments

One Response to “Palmdale Water District offers cash for water-saving yards”

  1. Jane Smith on March 11th, 2011 8:12 pm

    I understand that there is a three-part workshop taking place- starting tomorrow. I’m a new Palmdale resident and wish I’d found out sooner. If I can still participate as an attendee, please let me know. 661-547-3474. I wish I could come to the March 12th event. But even if I can only attend one- I’m interested.
    Thank you.
    Jane Smith

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