MWD SoCal Water$mart Turf Replacement

Requirements

• Apply and get approval before removing any lawn.
• Replant with low-water or native plants.
• Planting density: 3 plants per 100 sq ft.
• Include a rain garden or other stormwater feature.
• Mulch the converted area.
• Overhead spray converted to drip, micro-spray, bubblers or rotating nozzles, or capped for hand watering; no overhead spray in the finished project.
• Apply and receive an approval to proceed (a reservation of funds) before removing any turf; started or finished projects do not qualify. The turf must be alive; dead or dying lawn and bare dirt do not qualify. Approval arrives by email in about two weeks, and the project must be finished within 180 days of it.
• At least 250 sq ft removed, or all of it if the property has less. Multifamily buildings of 4 units or fewer apply as residential; 5 or more as commercial. The square footage reserved cannot be increased later, so measure the project area carefully.
• At least 3 plants per 100 sq ft in the project area (an existing tree counts as 1, a new qualifying tree as 3); no turf, turf-look grasses, invasive plants or synthetic turf.
• A stormwater feature that captures rain: rain garden, rock garden, dry river bed, swale, berm, rain barrel or cistern (a barrel or cistern needs gutters and downspouts and must drain to the project area).
• A 3 inch ring of organic mulch around every plant (rock or decomposed granite allowed in a Very High Fire Severity Zone), and no bare soil anywhere in the area; hardscape must be permeable, with no grouted concrete or structures.
• Irrigation changed on every project: overhead spray converted to drip, micro-spray, bubblers or rotating nozzles, or capped for hand watering; no overhead spray in the finished project.
• The rebate is a Metropolitan base amount plus any supplement from the local agency, set by funding available at approval; the estimate is not a guarantee. One application per meter address per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30).
• To apply, have ready at least 5 color photos of the lawn, a simple landscape plan showing the area and the type and location of the stormwater feature, and a photo or scan of a recent water bill; the address on the application must match the bill exactly. Renters may apply with the owner's written consent if their name is on the water bill. To claim the rebate, at least 8 photos of the finished area; a W-9 for rebates of $600 or more (a 1099 follows); the check arrives 8 to 10 weeks after final approval and is void after 90 days.
• The conversion is meant to be permanent: a project may be inspected at any time, and if the turf replacement cannot be verified the rebate must be refunded. The owner or account holder must stay the same from application to verified completion.
• Optional tree rebate: $100 per qualifying tree of 15 gallons or more installed in the project area, up to 5 trees ($500) per application, with proof of purchase; each counts as 3 plants toward the plant count. No palms, hedges, invasive species or trees without a spreading canopy.
• Commercial, public agency and multifamily (5 or more units) projects: the same rules, with the Metropolitan base of $2.00 per sq ft on up to 50,000 sq ft per water meter address per fiscal year, plus any local agency supplement; the current figure is on the commercial Estimate Your Rebate tool (socalwatersmart.com/en/commercial/rebates/estimate-your-rebate/). Commercial rebates cannot exceed eligible program costs, shown by typed invoices and receipts.

Steps, in order

1. Apply through your own water supplier (the members are listed on this page) and wait for approval. Lawn removed before approval usually does not qualify.
2. Remove the lawn and plant to the requirements above.
3. Send what the program page asks for once the work is done.