Water restrictions in Des Plaines, IL — also called the watering schedule, outdoor irrigation rules, or drought ordinance — set which days and hours you can run sprinklers or irrigation.
Des Plaines receives Lake Michigan water through the Northwest Water Commission and enforces seasonal lawn watering restrictions during summer months. Sprinkling is typically restricted to odd/even days or specific hours per IDNR Lake Michigan allocation rules.
Des Plaines is a Lake Michigan water customer through the Northwest Water Commission, and Illinois Department of Natural Resources Lake Michigan water allocation rules require participating communities to enforce lawn sprinkling restrictions from May 15 through September 15. Typical restrictions limit lawn sprinkling to odd-numbered addresses on odd-numbered calendar dates and even-numbered addresses on even-numbered dates, with no sprinkling between 12:00 noon and 6:00 PM. Hand-watering of gardens, flowers, and shrubs is generally permitted at any time. The city may impose additional emergency restrictions during droughts or system maintenance. Contact Public Works at (847) 391-5464 for current restrictions.
Watering violations typically result in warnings for first offense and fines of $50 to $500 for repeat violations. Continued violations may result in service shut-off in extreme cases.
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Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Cook County.
See how other cities in Cook County handle water restrictions.
See how Des Plaines's water restrictions rules stack up against other locations.
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