Las Vegas Paying Residents To Remove Lawns

With Lake Mead already down to two-thirds capacity, water officials in fast-growing Southern Nevada have spent over $80 million to 'encourage' residents to rip up sod and "xeriscape" their yards.

1 minute read

July 20, 2007, 7:00 AM PDT

By Christian Madera @http://www.twitter.com/cpmadera


"Water for lawns is probably 60 percent of our water use," Patricia Mulroy, a senior manager at the Southern Nevada Water Authority.

With the region experiencing its worse water shortage in memory, local government is trying to shift residents' perspective regarding drought tolerant landscaping -- something Mulroy supposes all Western urban areas will need to deal with in the near future as growth continues.

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