San Ramon, CA Water Use Rules: Turf Replacement Rebates (2026)

Under San Ramon Municipal Code § C4-122(D), the combined area devoted to turf and to water features such as pools, ponds and fountains is limited to 25 percent of the irrigated area on covered projects. Public parks, golf courses, cemeteries, greenbelts and school recreation areas are excluded from the cap. Any turf that is installed must have a water requirement less than or equal to tall fescue, though the zoning administrator can grant an exception where the functional use of the landscape requires a different turfgrass species.

The turf cap sits inside a broader landscape-water-conservation package: at least 90 percent of plants in full-sun, non-turf areas and 80 percent of plants in shaded or partially shaded non-turf areas must be low-water species suited to the regional climate, with the remainder allowed only if irrigated on a separate valve. Section C4-122(B) applies these standards to all new landscaping for new construction (residential subdivisions, model homes, multifamily, commercial, industrial and public projects) and to rehabilitated landscaping for commercial, industrial and multifamily properties; individual single-family lots and sites irrigated with reclaimed water are exempt from the turf cap and plant-selection rules.

No landscaping subject to the section may be installed until the applicant receives written approval of landscape plans, which the East Bay Municipal Utility District reviews for free, or, if EBMUD's schedule does not work for the applicant, a city-contracted landscape water conservation specialist reviews at the applicant's expense. The city allows a minimum of 30 days for each plan review and each re-review needed because of nonconformance. Irrigation systems installed under this section must use drip or bubbler emitters for trees, matched-precipitation sprinkler heads, rain shut-off or moisture-sensing controllers, and low-precipitation heads on slopes over 15 percent (or over 10 percent within 10 feet of hardscape) to control runoff.