Imperial County, CA Landscaping Rules: Artificial Turf (2026)

The county does not ban artificial turf, but it limits how much credit a project gets for it. In the landscaping standards for mobile-home/RV parks, industrial uses, and commercial uses, Title 9 Division 3 states that ornamental or landscaping rock and gravel areas, artificial turf, or other areas covered with artificial material do not count toward the required minimum landscaping percentage (see §90302.02, §90302.03, and §90302.04). Those minimums are real: 10% of the developed area for mobile-home/RV, industrial, and commercial projects; 15% for multi-unit residential; and 20% for single-unit residential developments (§90302.02-§90302.06). In practice this means a covered project can install synthetic turf for play or accent areas but must still provide the required share of live, irrigated planting with an automatic irrigation system that is continually maintained (§90302.02.E and parallel subsections). Homeowner-provided landscaping for single-family homes and duplexes is excluded from these design standards (§90302.09), so a typical homeowner installing a synthetic lawn is not constrained by the percentage rules. The county code does not set separate drainage, infill, or heat-related specifications for artificial turf; ordinary site, drainage, and building standards apply. Synthetic turf is one common way to cut the supplemental-water demand the county's 30-inch/year cap targets.