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If you live in Tampa, it's also time to bid farewell to your beloved automatic sprinklers and go back to watering solely by hand - a mandate that can only be interpreted by long-time Floridians as a sign of one of two realities: if you're a God-fearing soul, that the end of the world is nigh, or if you're not, that there might be a grain of truth to that whole global warming rumor after all.
In recent weeks and months, neighbors have been pitted against each other in the war of conspicuous consumption. Water on the wrong day, and you risk being reported to the Water Police. If you're not from the Bay area, you might be permitted to feign ignorance about drought conditions that have lingered for the past three years, and escape with nothing more than a not-so-friendly warning. But if the Water Patrol doesn't buy your "That's not water on my lawn, that's dew. Ha, ha…" excuse, you could be stuck with costly fines that escalate rapidly for repeat offenders. And in this economy, hitting people in the wallet is going to get real ugly, real fast.
Clearly unnerved by an embarrassing display of quasi-revolution among some local residents and business owners over Tampa's version of liquid gold, the Tampa City Council met on Thursday to vent its frustrations and acknowledge its own confusion about the new restrictions.
Some Council members questioned why the new Tampa regulations aren't being gradually imposed as part of a previously discussed two-phase process that would allow residents to continue using sprinklers for one day every other week before resorting to an all-or-nothing worst-case scenario that will ban automatic sprinklers altogether.
Although the ban remains in place, the Council did make one magnanimous concession. Well owners will still be permitted to use their sprinklers once each week. The Council is scheduled to meet again on April 9th to revisit the issue.
How Will the Local Economy Weather the War on Water?
Although the automatic sprinkler ban will only affect Tampa residents, Phase 4 restrictions enacted by Swiftmud will be felt across the region. Depending on the county in which you live, using water in decorative fountains may also be off-limits, although many residents will still be allowed to plant new sod and water it daily for two weeks.
Sod companies are concerned about the number of residents who don't realize they can still plant and water new sod. Many professionals who install automatic sprinkler systems question whether they'll be able to stay afloat in a local economy that has already lost so much momentum, especially in an area riddled with foreclosures and some of the worst unemployment statistics in the country.
Many such businesses have already laid off workers, and even Swiftmud has acknowledged that the new Phase 4 restrictions are expected to cost approximately 350 local jobs.
On the bright side, however, commercial car wash businesses are planning to hire more workers, as residents will no longer be allowed to wash their own cars, and schools and charities will be forced to halt their fundraising efforts as well.
Additional Restrictions for Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties
- No residential pressure washing
- Fewer hours available for watering on designated watering days
Update: On March 31, 2009, Swiftmud agreed to enforce Phase 4 water restrictions, and on April 3, 2009, Tampa residents were also subjected to a historic ban on automatic lawn sprinklers. On April 8, 2009, the Tampa City Council voted 4-2 to keep the tighter restrictions in place, despite protests from the business community. Tampa currently has the strictest water restrictions in the state. It is estimated that over 50 million gallons of water were saved in the first week alone as a result of the Tampa sprinkler ban.
Confused about the new restrictions in your area? Click here for more information on the Swiftmud restrictions in your area and ideas on how to conserve water.
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