Water restrictions in St. Louis, MO — also called the watering schedule, outdoor irrigation rules, or drought ordinance — set which days and hours you can run sprinklers or irrigation.
St. Louis has no permanent irrigation schedule. The City Water Division, which draws from the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers via Chain of Rocks and Howard Bend plants, may impose emergency restrictions during drought declarations but none are currently in effect. Missouri follows riparian reasonable use water law.
St. Louis City is served by the St. Louis City Water Division (not Missouri American Water), which operates the Chain of Rocks (Mississippi River) and Howard Bend (Missouri River) treatment plants. Because St. Louis sits at the confluence of two major rivers, supply is abundant and no standing day-of-week or time-of-day irrigation restrictions exist. Under Ord. §23.24 and the Water Commissioner's emergency authority, mandatory conservation may be declared during drought or system emergencies — typically limiting lawn watering to odd/even address days or prohibiting daytime irrigation. Missouri Revised Statutes Chapter 640 delegates water conservation to the Department of Natural Resources (MoDNR), which issues voluntary advisories. Missouri follows the riparian reasonable use doctrine (common law) rather than western-style appropriative rights.
During declared drought emergencies, violations of watering restrictions range from $50 (first offense) to $500 (repeat) under the emergency proclamation. No fines apply during normal operations. Commercial water theft or tampering with city hydrants is a Class A misdemeanor under Ord. §23.24.210 carrying fines up to $1,000 and up to 1 year in jail.
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