Santa Clarita brings back lawn replacement program

Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency’s Water’s Lawn Replacement Program (LRP) is back and is being touted as better than before.

The new and improved LRP, will provide customers $3 per square foot of grass removed and replaced with water-efficient landscaping. There are also more incentives and rebates to help customers complete their projects and customers can now mix, match and stack incentives.

“Following the previous drought, program participation decreased so we went back to the drawing board to determine optimal strategies to increase program participation on a sustainable scale,” said SCV Water Sustainability Manager Matt Dickens. “The new parameters will make it easier for customers to participate and provide increased water savings opportunities.”

The revised Lawn Replacement Program now allows for:

• Eligible project areas: front, side, back yards, and parkways
• Square footage requirements: projects 100 sq. ft. minimum – 2,500 sq. ft. maximum; 5,000 sq. ft. max per year
• Additional incentives: native plants, irrigation options, and more
• More flexibility: mix, match, and stack incentives and additional rebates

And customers who still want to keep some of their grass can participate too! With this option, customers may convert some zones to water-efficient plants while maintaining other zones with the existing turfgrass.

Additional Incentives & Rebates

• SCV Water has added several new programs and incentives that focus on sustainable landscape practices such as:
• Native Plant Bonus Incentive. Get an additional incentive for using native plants on at least half of the project area plant coverage.
• Sheet Mulching Program. Try an eco-friendly, no-dig method of grass removal while adding nutrients to the soil.
• Water Retention Feature Program. Try one or more options (terracing, rain gardens and bioswales) to help save and reuse rainwater, recharge groundwater and reduce runoff from the landscape.
• Owl Boxes and Bee Hotels. Cultivate native species in the landscape for natural rodent control and native plant pollination.
• Rain Barrels. Harvest rainwater for supplemental watering by using rain barrels, up to two (2) per account.

“We are excited to add these innovative bonus rebates and incentives to our Lawn Replacement Program,” said Julia Grothe, project lead and SCV Water’s water conservation specialist. “We hope that this new program not only helps customers save water and money, but also helps make a positive difference in the sustainability of our community.”

For more LRP information including how to apply, visit conserve.yourSCVwater.com.