Cash for Grass

Over the past four years, more than 3,600 California customers have taken advantage of the Mojave Water Agency's ''Cash for Grass'' program. The program pays residents up to $3,000 and businesses up to $10,000 for replacing lawns with drought-tolerant and desert-adaptive landscaping.

According to government sources, Victor Valley participants have removed 4.2 million square feet of grass, equating to an annual savings of 710 acre-feet of water. 710 acre-feet of water rights would cost more than $3.7 million, based on October 2009 rates. The agency has spent $2.1 million on turf rebates.

''The cost efficiency of using conservation as a water supply is really the impetus behind agencies wanting to invest in these types of programs,'' Tamara Alaniz, MWA Water Conservation Program manager, said. ''Our approach at the agency is to do any and every act possible to make sure that we're working to secure a long-term water supply for the region.''

The MWA is now in phase three of the rebate program, having run out of money quickly during the first two phases. A $2 million windfall from a state grant will fund up to 4,000,000 square feet more of turf removal.

The MWA has already received more than 200 applications totaling more than 400,000 square feet of removal since restarting the program in November.