County adds teeth to water ordinance

An emergency law translates into fines for people caught watering their lawns. Residents now may water only once a week.

By ALISA ULFERTS and CHASE SQUIRES

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 22, 2000

DADE CITY -- Watering your lawn at the wrong time just got expensive.

[Times photo: Dan McDuffie] A dead fish rests atop the parched bed of Lake Zephyr in Pasco County. More photos List of restrictions Officials: Water as we say, not as we did

Tougher one-day-a-week watering restrictions kick in today, and those who violate them get an automatic $35 fine for the first offense. Repeat offenders must appear before the code enforcement board, which can levy up to $500 in fines.

"I think you have to put some teeth in it if you want people to notice," County Commission Chairwoman Pat Mulieri said Tuesday, the day the commission unanimously adopted the emergency ordinance.

Beginning today, residents of unincorporated Pasco County with even-numbered addresses or those including the letters A through M can water their lawns Tuesdays before 9 a.m. or after 5 p.m. That cuts Saturdays out of the old watering schedule.

Residents with odd-numbered addresses or including the letters N through Z can water Sundays at the above times. That cuts Wednesdays out of the old watering schedule. Residents caught watering today will be fined $35.

Although commissioners said they realized they were giving short notice, they said the lack of rain has made extreme measures necessary. Rainfall is 11 inches below normal for the past 12 months.

"We're in a crisis. We have a drought," Commissioner Ann Hildebrand said. "I think our code enforcement people need to be very aggressive."

The watering restrictions apply even to people who have private wells, and they also extend to car washing. That means there will be none of it allowed at home. Residents still can take their cars to a commercial car wash; many of those businesses use recycled water. But non-profit groups that depend on car washes to raise money for marching band trips or other causes will have to find another source of income. Commissioners agreed not to exempt them from the restrictions.

"They can always go back to the bake sale," Hildebrand said.

But there are some exemptions: Residences and businesses that are hooked up to reclaimed water can water their lawns and landscape at will. New lawns and new landscaping are exempt from the restrictions for the first 30 days (Builders often can't close on new homes until the sod is set). Residents can hand-water established plants and shrubs or use water as required to apply insecticides, as long as they use a minimum of water.

In tightening water restrictions, Pasco follows the example set by Hillsborough County and the city of Tampa. They also have restricted watering to Tuesdays and Sundays, and other cities are expected to follow suit.

But the county's regulations won't necessarily go into effect immediately in Pasco's incorporated municipalities. The city of New Port Richey was scheduled to discuss emergency restrictions at its Tuesday City Council meeting, but Port Richey doesn't meet again until next week. Doug Drymon, city manager of Dade City, and Zephyrhills City Manager Steve Spina said their cities generally follow regulations set by the Southwest Florida Water Management District, commonly known as Swiftmud.

Swiftmud spokesman Michael Molligan said Tuesday his agency is planning to consider altering the two-day-a-week water limits in place since 1992. By next week, that could come down to parallel Pasco County's new rules.

Spina said he would put the issue on Monday's City Council meeting agenda.

Counties and cities can always enforce tighter restrictions than Swiftmud's, but they cannot allow more liberal watering than the agency's, Molligan said.

One water consumer still unclear on the ramifications of Tuesday's Pasco County ruling is Roy Gaddey, developer of the new Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club in Saint Leo.

Water use for golf courses, especially one as new as Lake Jovita, which opened last fall, is crucial, Gaddey said. The course draws from its own well but does not have reclaimed water.

"I would think they would have to notify us," Gaddey said. "I will not know until we get a letter what this means."

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