San Leandro, CA Water Use Rules: Recycled Water Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Irrigation source rule
- Recycled water required if available
- Water features
- Recirculating water; recycled water source if available
- Applies to
- New/rehab commercial, industrial, larger residential
- Older large landscapes
- Irrigation audit if pre-2010 and over 1 acre
- Runoff/overspray
- Prohibited water waste, Section 4.16.132
Summary
San Leandro's landscape design standards require recycled water for all irrigation on covered projects when it is available, and recycled water as the source for decorative water features, under Zoning Code Section 4.16.116.D.7-8.
D. Design Standards for Projects Requiring a Landscape Documentation Package and/or Irrigation Design Plan. All new or rehabilitated commercial, industrial or developer-installed residential landscapes that exceed 2,500 square feet or residential landscapes that exceed 5,000 square feet shall adhere to the following design standards. 7. Recirculating water shall be used for water features and, where available, recycled water shall be used as a source for decorative water features. 8. Recycled water shall be used for all irrigation (if available).
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4967405; v8 updated 2026-07-06).
Full Breakdown
The recycled water mandate is part of the same landscape design-standards block that governs new or rehabilitated commercial and industrial landscaping of any size, developer-installed residential landscaping over 2,500 square feet, and residential landscaping over 5,000 square feet, under Section 4.16.116.D. Subsection 7 requires that recirculating water be used for any decorative water feature, and that recycled water be used as the water feature's source where recycled water is available. Subsection 8 goes further for irrigation generally: recycled water must be used for all irrigation on a covered project if recycled water is available to the site, not just for decorative features.
These requirements sit alongside the chapter's other efficiency mandates, including a Landscape Documentation Package certified by a licensed landscape architect, certified irrigation designer, or licensed landscape contractor under Section 4.16.108, backflow prevention devices to protect the potable water supply from the irrigation system, and weather-based or soil moisture-based irrigation controllers required on all systems. Once a project is built, Section 4.16.128 subjects existing landscapes installed before January 1, 2010 and larger than one acre to irrigation audits by a certified landscape irrigation auditor, and Section 4.16.132 separately prohibits water waste from irrigation runoff or overspray onto adjacent property, walks, roadways, or structures for any landscape, not just recycled-water systems.
Violations & Fines
Water waste from irrigation runoff, overspray, or low head drainage, including on recycled-water irrigation systems, is prohibited under Section 4.16.132 and subject to Municipal Code penalties; a project's failure to use available recycled water where required by Section 4.16.116.D can also block Landscape Documentation Package approval and expose the responsible party to an administrative penalty under Section 1-12-415.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does San Leandro require recycled water for landscape irrigation?
What if recycled water is not available to my property?
Do fountains and decorative ponds need to use recycled water too?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Leandro
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