City Council Places Turf Restriction

LAS VEGAS, NV

This fall, the Las Vegas, Nevada City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that will restrict the amount of turf at future home and business sites. The ordinance limits the amount of turf allowed in front lawns to 50 percent of the area that can be landscaped, including the driveway. The measure allows businesses to have grass on 25 percent of their outside property. An earlier draft of the ordinance would have prohibited turf at commercial developments.

The measure won widespread support from home builders, conservationists and businesses, including the Southern Nevada Coalition 2000, a group of business representatives who believe the private sector should take a lead in the water conservation movement. Coalition 2000's position was that existing water restrictions and water conservation education save the valley millions of gallons of water every year, but it's not enough. Restrictions which limit turf usage and require water-efficient landscape and drip irrigation are necessary to conserve even more water, they argued.

However, the Nevada Landscape Association (NLA) strongly opposed the measure, arguing that the problem is not turf but the lack of properly installed and inspected irrigation systems and proper management. "Removing turf, the single most popular landscape material, is not conservation," explained an NLA spokesperson, adding that "legislating design and so-called 'native' plant lists restricts creativity and does not by itself create water savings." Besides, he pointed out, turf areas provide a tremendous amount of cooling. "Surface temperatures on grass as opposed to rock can vary as much as 40 degrees. Installing rock landscapes in our valley will only make our hot summers seem hotter."

Backers expect a reduction of 98 million gallons in the first year; over five years, the savings are estimated at about 1.47 billion gallons.