The Cucamonga Valley Water District (CVWD/District) is celebrating Smart Irrigation Month throughout July by offering activities to educate customers on the importance of water use efficiency. Smart Irrigation Month, spearheaded by the Irrigation Association, is a public outreach campaign celebrated annually in July with the purpose of creating awareness about water saving irrigation devices and ways to cut water waste outdoors. Though drought conditions have subsided, CVWD encourages all customers to continue using water efficiently, fixing leaks immediately, and taking advantage of valuable conservation rebates and programs.

This year CVWD is hosting a social media challenge to encourage customers to take action. Participants are asked to share a photo or video of themselves (or a family member) using a “Smart Irrigation” technique. At the end of the month two winners will be chosen. Prizes include a basket of conservation materials and devices, in addition to a high efficiency toilet and installation. Those interested in participating can monitor CVWD’s website and social media channels- www.CVWDwater.com, Facebook.com/CVWDwater, Twitter.com/CVWDwater, and YouTube.com/CVWDwater for updates.

Examples of “Smart Irrigation” tips that can be implemented throughout the competition include:

• Check for and fix misaligned and broken sprinkler heads, such as those spraying the sidewalk or street
• Install water saving devices such as high efficiency sprinkler nozzles and weather based irrigation controllers
• Make sure you run sprinklers in the early morning hours before sunrise to avoid water lost to evaporation
• Adjust your outdoor pressure to avoid water lost to misting sprinklers

The District also promotes additional incentives and rebate programs that may assist homeowners in saving water outdoors. These include:

• Parkway Turf Replacement Rebate Program which provides a $300 incentive to single-family, residential homeowners to remove high water using grass from parkways and replace it with attractive, low-water using plants and efficient watering systems that are conducive to these small spaces of landscaping.
• Residential Controller Upgrade Program which enables homeowners to replace old water timers, with a new, water efficient device installed by a landscape professional.
• Weather Based Irrigation Timer rebates are available for $80 and provide the appropriate watering schedule, adjust for weather changes and irrigate based on the needs of the landscape and soil conditions.
• High Efficiency Sprinkler Nozzle rebates are available to customers for $2 per nozzle, as they disperse water at a more efficient rate.
• Rain barrel rebates provide a $75 incentive to aid in rainwater capture for later use.
• Soil Moisture Sensor System rebates for $80 measure soil moisture content in the active root zone and send the data to a compatible irrigation timer.

For more information about CVWD’s workshops, landscape programs and programs to help save water outdoors, visit CVWDwater.com or call (909) 987-2591.