WEBER COUNTY, Utah -- Water wasters watch out: The Weber Basin Water Conservancy District is out on patrol checking when and how often you're watering.
If you’re caught overwatering, you could see an orange water violation warning on your door. The WBWCD says it’s three strikes, and you’re out.
“They'll be looking for the obvious sprinklers running, water running down gutters if it's going down a property--anything like that,” said David Rice, Conservation Program Manager for the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District.
Cruising street by street from Salt Lake City to South Ogden, David Rice and his conservation team are out warning water violators.
Rice says their main goal is education. The offense they see most is people wasting hundreds of gallons of water by turning their sprinklers on during restricted times.
They're also looking at irrigation runoff and enforcing a new rule for this year: No watering more than three times each week.
“Three days a week should be plenty to keep the lawn green, even though we've had a lot of heat,” Rice said.
If you're caught the first time, it's a warning along with an education pamphlet left on your door.
On the second time, they'll make contact to see if they can help you fix the problem.
But the third time, your secondary water will be cut off.
“If they want a reconnection they'll pay a fee for $100, and if it happens again simply turn off the water for the rest of the summer,” Rice said.
With Utah’s dry summers and the growing population, creating a culture of water conservation is key. Rice said every drop counts.
“If you eliminate one irrigation cycle per week, that's thousands of gallons for that parcel, and if you multiply that by thousands of parcels, we're saving millions of gallons a week by changing one irrigation day,” Rice said.
Rice and his team have already handed out more than a hundred warnings, and they will be out in full force throughout the rest of the summer months
