California Water Commission Adopts Updated State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance for Cities and Counties

This week, the California Water Commission adopted the updated State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance per the Governor’s Executive Order, B-29-15.  The Executive Order calls for revising the model ordinance for cities and counties to increase water efficiency standards for new and retrofitted landscapes through more efficient irrigation systems and other means, as well as limiting the portion of landscapes that can be covered in turf.  

The Executive Order also requires reporting on the implementation and enforcement of local ordinances, with required reports due by December 31, 2015.

The Water Conservation in Landscaping Act of 2006 (Assembly Bill 1881 (Laird)) required cities and counties to adopt landscape water conservation ordinances by January 1, 2010.  At that time, the Department of Water Resources prepared a Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance for use by local agencies.  The original model ordinance was approved by the Office of Administrative Law on September 10, 2009, and became effective immediately.

The updated State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance and the Governor’s Executive Order can be accessed here.