Lawn-watering restrictions for residents in Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties have been extended until July 1, according to a news release from the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
Since Dec. 1, residents in the three counties have been limited to watering their lawns once a week. The district declared a “Modified Phase I Water Shortage” on Nov. 14 due to dry conditions in the region and water supply concerns.
The update mirrors the restrictions in place throughout Southwest Florida until July 1.
The release said most of the Tampa Bay region is still seeing drier-than-normal conditions. Tampa Bay Water's C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir — which holds 15 billion gallons of water — is also about 8.5 billion gallons below normal capacity. The district approved a request to temporarily increase TBW's withdrawals from the Alafia River to store water in the reservoir ahead of the dry season.
Here are the days and times to water your lawns across Hillsborough, Pasco, and Pinellas counties. These times may vary if your city or county has a different schedule or stricter hours in effect:
- If your address (house number) ends in:
- 0 or 1, water only on Monday
- 2 or 3, water only on Tuesday
- 4 or 5, water only on Wednesday
- 6 or 7, water only on Thursday
- 8 or 9, and locations without a discernible address, water only on Friday
- Properties under two acres may only water before 8 a.m. or after 6 p.m.
- Properties two acres or larger may only water before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m.
- Low-volume watering of plants and shrubs (micro-irrigation, soaker hoses, hand watering) is allowed at any day and any time
Dunedin will continue its one-day-per-week watering schedule, according to the release.
The lawn-watering restrictions enacted throughout Southwest Florida on Nov. 21 will remain in effect through July 1. They forbid “wasteful and unnecessary” water use but won’t change watering schedules for most counties, according to the release. Twice-per-week watering schedules will stay in effect except where local governments have placed stricter measures.
The restrictions apply to all the following counties:
- Citrus
- DeSoto
- Hardee
- Hernando
- Hillsborough
- Manatee
- Pasco
- Pinellas
- Polk
- Sarasota
- Sumter
They also apply to:
- Parts of Charlotte, Highlands and Lake counties
- Dunnellon and The Villages in Marion County
- The portion of Gasparilla Island in Lee County
Citrus, Hernando and Sarasota counties, and the city of Venice will remain on one-day-per-week watering schedules.
The announcement comes after the U.S. Drought Monitor reported 2023 was the driest year-to-date in many areas in Sarasota, Hillsborough and Manatee counties.
The water management district also has a 12-month rainfall deficit of about 7.4 inches, according to the release, despite above-average rainfall in November and December.
