LOS ANGELES (November 7, 2019) – LADWP customers interested in transforming their thirsty lawns to drought-tolerant landscaping have a free resource in the form of Hands-on Workshops (HOWs) offered by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) Turf Replacement Program. The free workshops teach customers how to remove turf, grade soil for capturing rainwater, and the step-by-step process to create sustainable landscapes in their own yard. These classes are designed to help empower customers to better manage their outdoor water use by creating water efficient and beautiful landscapes while taking advantage of LADWP’s turf removal rebate.
LADWP’s residential customers are now eligible to receive a $3 per square foot rebate for up to 5,000 square feet of turf removed, adding up to a potential $15,000 in rebates. LADWP’s HOWs help customers maximize the rebate by teaching them how to undertake the landscaping transformation work themselves. Transforming their properties by replacing turf with California Friendly® and native landscaping can help customers conserve water and lower their utility bills. In addition to the workshops, LADWP’s other free landscaping resources include a dedicated website, fact sheets, watering guides, planting templates and YouTube videos.
Interested LADWP customers may be eligible to host a HOW and be a trendsetter in their neighborhood. As a host, a participant’s front yard will serve as an outdoor classroom for neighbors and community members to learn about topics such as irrigation installation/conversion and drought tolerant plant planting. Hosts benefit from the free professional landscape design, free landscape materials and installation, free landscape maintenance workbooks, and bill savings on future water use.
“We are excited to bring these resources to our customers – they are reshaping the landscape of Los Angeles and it’s good for their bottom line given the water savings. The Turf Replacement Program is making it possible for customers to invest and transform their own yards and make water conservation a California way of life,” said Terrence McCarthy, LADWP’s Water Conservation Policy manager.
Customers have been very responsive to the program helping meet the challenge set by the Mayor in 2015 to reduce daily water consumption by 20% in 2017. From January through August 2019, residential customers removed approximately 190,311 square feet of turf through the program, saving an estimated 8.4 million gallons of water per year. The total amount of water savings offsets drinking water served to about 77 Los Angeles homes.
For more information on attending or hosting a Hands On Workshop, visit www.lawnbegonedwp.com. For rebate and incentive details visit www.ladwp.com/landscaping.
The next HOWs are scheduled for:
-December 7th/14th (Los Feliz)
January 25th/February 1st (Hyde Park)
###
