ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : Keeping the Green We Have

It seems almost un-American to suggest that a beautiful expanse of green lawn might be bad for the environment. But turf grass is hardly the best use of resources. More water, fertilizer and mulching are needed by lawns than by most other types of landscaping.

With this in mind, two innovative proposals are under consideration in Orange County that would require developers to install landscaping that uses less water and otherwise conserves resources. These are the kinds of measure that should be adopted to make sure that Orange County never has to face the kind of water shortages that are already crippling Santa Barbara and threatening Los Angeles.

In Irvine, an ordinance is scheduled to go before the City Council on May 22 that would allow projects to use grass in no more than 25% of landscaping and would require grouping of plants according to water needs. There would also be requirements to use composted organic matter. The ordinance would apply to public, commercial and condominium projects and would exempt single-family residences.

At the same time, a county task force is talking about having developers file a water management plan before a building permit can be issued. That idea, which would need approval from the Board of Supervisors, would institute guidelines on the kinds of vegetation that could be planted and the irrigation equipment that could be used. Also under consideration is a residential water-billing system that would allot water to homes based on the number of people in a household and the amount of landscape acreage of the property.

Neither proposal would make Orange County any less green. Each would simply, and wisely, preserve resources.