Orange County, CA Landscaping Rules: Water Restrictions (2026)

Water service in unincorporated Orange County is delivered by local retail water agencies, wholesaled through the Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC). There is no single Orange County government ordinance setting universal watering days or hours; specific watering-day schedules and drought stages are set by each customer's retail water district. What does apply countywide are California's statewide water-waste prohibitions enforced by the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB). These ban applying potable water in a way that causes runoff onto adjacent property or pavement, washing a vehicle with a hose lacking a shut-off nozzle, hosing down sidewalks and driveways, and operating decorative fountains that do not recirculate water. California has also made conservation a permanent way of life through Senate Bill 606 and Assembly Bill 1668 (2018), which set permanent urban water-use efficiency standards and phase out irrigation of non-functional/decorative turf at many commercial, industrial, and institutional properties regardless of drought. For specific watering days, hours, and any drought-stage limits, unincorporated residents must check with their retail water provider. New and rehabilitated landscapes also fall under the County's Water Efficient Landscape (WELO/MWELO) program.