SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
Las Vegas's new strategy for tackling drought – banning 'useless grass':
A new Nevada law will outlaw about 40% of the grass in the Las Vegas area in an effort to conserve water amid a drought that is drying up the region's primary water source: the Colorado River.
Other cities and states around the US have enacted temporary bans on lawns that must be watered, but legislation signed Friday by the state's governor, Steve Sisolak, makes Nevada the first in the nation to enact a permanent ban on certain categories of grass. Sisolak said last week that anyone flying into Las Vegas viewing the "bathtub rings" that delineate how high Lake Mead's water levels used to be can see that conservation is needed.
"It's incumbent upon us for the next generation to be more conscious of conservation and our natural resources, water being particularly important," he said.
The ban targets what the Southern Nevada Water Authority calls "non-functional turf". It applies to grass that virtually no one uses at office parks, street medians and the entrances to housing developments. It excludes single-family homes, parks and golf courses.
The measure will require the replacement of about 8 sq miles (21 sq km) of grass in the metro Las Vegas area. By ripping it out, water officials estimate the region can reduce annual water consumption by 15% and save about 14 gallons (53 liters) per person a day in a region with a population of about 2.3 million.
If you want grass, go live where grass grows naturally.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Reziac on Friday June 11 2021, @03:02AM (1 child)
Depends entirely on your grass. Sheep fescue (which is native) survives just fine on scant desert rainfall. It'll go dormant when it gets too dry, but about half the year you'll have an attractive lawn that doesn't need mowing, because it never gets more than ankle-high.
But yeah, adjusting water rates to discourage waste would be a lot more sensible than just decreeing that by damn you're not allowed to have grass. (Never mind the golf course, that's none of your business.)
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 11 2021, @06:01AM
You can also just give out rebates and free water saving showerhead along with educating the users, you'd be surprised how much water can be saved just by educating users and giving away free water saving items.
Pairing that with increased rates would likely be a good idea to avoid the paradox of efficiency.