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Water managers finally adopted a Landscape Irrigation Rule this month after two years of negotiations. The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) rule will replace two day-a-week emergency water restrictions and allow for up to three days-a-week for ten south Florida counties.

Audubon advocates have worked for years to promote water conservation and strong laws to ensure the Everglades and the wildlife that depend on resilient habitat get the water they need. A key strategy is to control the wasteful use of water for excessive landscape irrigation. Many water utilities oppose aggressive conservation because the more water that is wasted, the more money they make.

Now utilities are threatening to challenge the Landscape Irrigation Rule and to go even further in an attempt to undermine important state water law. The utilities, in essence, want to claim ownership of water that belongs to the public and to weaken state laws that ensure water is managed in the public interest.

Don't Let Utilities Drain Our Natural Systems

Florida has strong laws to protect freshwater resources needed for healthy rivers, lakes, streams, and ecosystems. When decisions are being made about how to allocate water, a set of tools in Florida Statute Chapter 373 ensures that the environment is given preference and that water supply is provided through permits that impose strict tests on use.

A cornerstone of Everglades Restoration is getting the quantity, quality, timing and distribution of water right. Attempts by utilities to both undermine water conservation and claim a right of ownership of a resource that is theirs to use by permit, but not to own, puts the health of the Everglades ecosystem at risk. Two weeks ago, lobbyists for the utilities called on the Legislature to block the Landscape Irrigation Rule. That’s right. The utilities used public funds to hire lawyers to block a water conservation rule that is essential to Everglades restoration. They are even planning to sue in state court to block this important rule.

Audubon needs your help to protect Water for the Everglades by writing to your legislator today.

Better Examples to Balance Our Water Needs and Protect Our Resources

As some water utilities threaten the new water conservation rules. Other utilities such as Miami-Dade County, are implementing responsible two day-a-week irrigation ordinances.

The Broward Board of County Commissioners is also seeking to implement a two day-a-week landscape irrigation ordinance within the county. This rule would impose even stricter conservation measures than those in the SFWMD's Landscape Irrigation Rule. If you live in Broward County, please contact your commissioners and ask them to vote, on December 8th, in favor of the two day-a-week landscape irrigation ordinance.

Palm Beach County Declines Challenging Water Conservation

In an attempt to stockpile Everglades water, regardless of need, Palm Beach County's utility tried a last minute stunt this week to convince its commissioners to sue to stop the Landscape Irrigation Rule. The utility actually contends that if they save water through conservation, they want to control that water…forever.

Audubon submitted a letter to the Palm Beach Board of County Commissioners calling upon the commissioners to refrain from using a water conservation rule to create ownership, by Palm Beach County, of the public's water. The South Florida Water Management District is trying to help utilities make the most of their water allocation through conservation.

Commissioners Koons, Marcus, Santamaria and Vana recognized that challenging the SFWMD's Landscape Irrigation Rule was not in the best interests of Palm Beach County and Audubon applauds these leaders for their prudent decision. Commissioners Aaronson, Abrams and Taylor voted to spend ratepayer funds to challenge the conservation rule and to challenge a key strategy for protecting water for the Everglades.