Water restrictions in Ventura County, CA — also called the watering schedule, outdoor irrigation rules, or drought ordinance — set which days and hours you can run sprinklers or irrigation.
Ventura County's Non-Coastal Zoning Ordinance landscaping rules (adopted March 2021) require new and rehabilitated landscapes to meet California's Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO). New landscapes of 500+ square feet and retrofits of 2,500+ square feet must comply. Local water districts also set day-to-day use rules.
On March 9, 2021, the Board of Supervisors adopted an update to the Non-Coastal Zoning Ordinance landscape regulations (Sections 8109-0.6, 8109-1.2, and 8109-1.3), replacing the 1992 Landscape Design Criteria and incorporating California's state-mandated water-conservation laws, including the Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) required by Assembly Bill 1881. Under MWELO as applied in the County, new construction projects with an aggregate landscape area of 500 square feet or more, and rehabilitated landscape projects of 2,500 square feet or more, must submit a Landscape Documentation Package and meet water-budget standards. For landscapes of 2,500 square feet or more the Performance method applies; smaller qualifying projects may use prescriptive options. The County General Plan reinforces this through policy WR-3.2, requiring discretionary development to meet or exceed MWELO standards, use graywater or reclaimed water for landscaping, install low-flow fixtures, and retain stormwater for reuse or groundwater recharge. Beyond construction-stage MWELO rules, day-to-day outdoor watering schedules (such as watering days and drought-stage restrictions) are set by the local water purveyor serving each area and by the State Water Resources Control Board during statewide drought emergencies, not by a single County watering-day ordinance. Property owners should check both County MWELO requirements at the permit stage and their water district's current conservation stage.
Failing MWELO compliance can block landscape or building permit approval and final sign-off. Day-to-day overwatering violations are enforced by the local water district under its own rules, and statewide prohibitions during drought emergencies are enforced by the State Water Resources Control Board.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Ventura County, CA
Outdoor music at homes in unincorporated Ventura County is limited at night by Ordinance No. 4124, which bars amplified or instrumental sound audible 50 feet...
Ventura County, CA
Ventura County's nighttime noise ordinance uses an audibility-at-50-feet test rather than a decibel number. Numeric dBA limits come from the General Plan's n...
Ventura County, CA
On county roads, painted curbs set parking rights under Traffic Ordinance Sec. 7200: red means no stopping, standing, or parking at any time; green allows 24...
Ventura County, CA
On county roads, yellow curbs are for loading freight or passengers and white curbs for brief passenger loading or mail (Sec. 7200). For new development, the...
Ventura County, CA
Designated communities ban oversized vehicles from county roads. Oak Park (Sec. 7251) bars vehicles over 25 ft long, 80 in wide, or 82 in high. Oak View and ...
Ventura County, CA
The Non-Coastal Zoning Ordinance lets operative, licensed, registered vehicles park in a driveway leading to a garage or carport, plus a paved strip up to 10...
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