Santa Cruz County, CA Water Use Rules: Turf Replacement Rebates (2026)

SCCC Chapter 13.13, the County's Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance, applies to the aggregate landscape area of new, expanded or rehabilitated landscaping on commercial, industrial, public, residential and agricultural service establishment projects that require a building, grading or discretionary permit (§ 13.13.030(A)). Residential landscaping is exempt if the aggregate new or rehabilitated area is 500 square feet or less, or if the work is only a remodel, an accessory dwelling unit, or an attached addition (§ 13.13.030(D)(1)); agricultural crops, family or community gardens, ecological restoration and registered historic landscapes are excluded outright (§ 13.13.030(D)(2)). Inside the City of Santa Cruz or the Soquel Creek Water District's service area, their own adopted WELOs, Chapter 16.16 SCCC and Ordinance No. 10-02, govern instead of the County chapter (§ 13.13.035).

For every covered project, SCCC § 13.13.060(B)(1) caps the combined area of turf, high water use plants and water features at 25 percent of the total landscape, a limit that does not apply to "special landscape areas" such as active recreation fields or zones irrigated with at least 60 percent recycled or graywater. Turf and high water use plants are barred entirely in planting strips under 10 feet wide, on slopes steeper than 25 percent, and in street medians, traffic islands or parking lot islands (§ 13.13.060(B)(2)).

Landscape plans must be prepared by a certified irrigation designer, certified landscape irrigation auditor, licensed landscape architect, licensed landscape contractor, licensed civil engineer, or another State-authorized preparer (§ 13.13.050), and completed work must pass a final inspection or irrigation audit before it is deemed compliant (§ 13.13.070). Existing landscapes over one acre can also be audited and assigned a maximum applied water allowance if their use runs high (§ 13.13.090).