Chino Hills, CA Water Use Rules: Turf Replacement Rebates (2026)
Key Facts
- Residential turf cap
- 25% of landscape area
- Non-residential turf
- Not allowed under prescriptive option
- Applies to
- Projects ≤2,500 sq ft, prescriptive path
- Slope limit for turf
- Barred on steep/hardscape-adjacent slopes
- Penalty
- Misdemeanor, separate offense per day
Summary
Under CHMC § 16.07.150, a residential landscape project of 2,500 square feet or less that uses the prescriptive compliance option cannot cover more than 25 percent of its landscape area in turf, and turf is barred outright on comparable non-residential projects. Larger or rehabilitated projects instead calculate a numeric Maximum Applied Water Allowance under Chapter 16.07.
4.Turf shall comply with all of the following:a.Turf shall not exceed twenty-five (25) percent of the landscape area in residential areas, and there shall be no turf in non-residential areas;b.Turf shall not be planted on sloped areas which exceed a slope of one (1) foot vertical elevation change for every four (4) feet of horizontal length;c.Turf is prohibited in parkways less than ten (10) feet wide, unless the parkway is adjacent to a parking strip and used to enter and exit vehicles.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 61).
Full Breakdown
030. 150 rather than the full performance calculation. That section's turf standard is explicit: turf cannot exceed 25 percent of the landscape area in residential projects, and non-residential projects using the prescriptive option cannot have any turf at all. The same section bars turf on slopes steeper than a one-foot vertical rise for every four feet of horizontal run, and prohibits turf in parkways narrower than ten feet unless the parkway sits next to a parking strip used for entering and exiting vehicles, in which case any turf allowed there must run on sub-surface irrigation with no overspray or runoff.
060(B)(1)(d) separately directs that 'turf areas shall be minimized and used wisely in response to functional needs' so that the project's Estimated Total Water Use does not exceed its Maximum Applied Water Allowance, and turf is barred entirely on slopes greater than 25 percent where the toe of the slope meets an impermeable hardscape. The prescriptive path also requires four cubic yards of compost per 1,000 square feet worked into the soil and installation of climate-adapted, low-water plants on at least 75 percent of the residential plant area.
Violations & Fines
Installing turf beyond the 25 percent residential cap, or any turf on a qualifying non-residential prescriptive project, violates CHMC § 16.07.150 and Chapter 16.07 generally. Section 16.07.160 makes a violation of the chapter a misdemeanor subject to the penalty in § 1.36.020, with each day of the violation a separate offense, and also allows the city to abate the violation as a public nuisance through a court injunction or the procedures in Chapter 8.12.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much of my yard in Chino Hills can be turf?
Is turf banned on slopes in Chino Hills?
What happens if a landscape project ignores the turf limit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Chino Hills
California rules heatmap·Compare Chino Hills to another location·View the California water use rules overview
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