St. George Home Services

Water-wise landscape · Turf conversion and the rebate

Water-wise conversion

Turf out, a water-wise landscape in, and the rebate handled end to end. One crew from the measurement to the cheque.

One flat fee to find out what is wrong. You are told it on the phone before anyone is dispatched, and it comes off the job if you hire us. Read our Plain Terms

What the work is

This is the whole job: measuring and documenting, removing the grass, converting the irrigation to drip, planting, surfacing, and submitting the application with the evidence the district asks for.

The reason to do it as one job is that the rebate has conditions on the finished landscape, and the finished landscape has to satisfy your city's ordinance as well. Splitting the work between people who are each following half the rules is how conversions get rejected.

You still sign the agreement yourself, and you should still read it.

What is included

  • Before measurement, photographs and documentation
  • Turf removal and disposal
  • Irrigation converted to drip, with the controller reprogrammed for the new plants
  • Planting and surfacing to a plan you have approved
  • Rebate application prepared and submitted with the evidence
  • The after documentation the district requires

What is not

  • Any guarantee of approval or of a payment amount. That is the district's decision, not ours
  • Hardscape beyond what is in your approved plan
  • HOA submissions, unless you ask us to prepare them
  • Ongoing maintenance

What the district pays and when

The Washington County Water Conservancy District pays a base rate per square foot of live turf removed, with an additional amount on the first 1,000 square feet running to 1 June 2027. The cap is per property per calendar year. There is no five-year rule on the district's programme; that condition belongs to the state programme and gets attributed to the district's constantly.

Payment runs about 30 days after approval and the cheques are void at 90, which is worth knowing so one does not sit on a counter.

The agreement you sign

The rebate agreement is not just a cheque. It carries conditions on the converted area, and in the district's case a right of physical entry to inspect. Read it before you sign it, and read the guide below if you would rather have it explained first.

Your city's rules on top

Every town here sets its own landscape rules and they are not the same. St. George, Washington City and Ivins each cap residential lawn differently, and Washington City's ceiling applies to every lot regardless of its size. Ivins bans lawn watering year-round and limits slope. Your town page has the figures with the section numbers next to them.

What to ask anyone quoting this, us included

  • Who submits the application, and whose name is on the agreement?
  • What does my city require the finished yard to look like?
  • What happens if the rebate is not approved?

What we can show you in writing

Every line traces to a document we read in full. The number after a sentence points to the research below.

  • WCWCD's Water Efficient Landscape rebate pays $3 per square foot on the first 1,000 square feet of lawn removed and $2 per square foot after that, for projects completed before June 1, 2027.1
  • The Washington County Water Conservancy District caps the landscape rebate at $100,000 per property per calendar year. There is no five-year waiting rule on the district side; that limit belongs to the separate state program, which Washington County applicants are routed away from.2
  • WCWCD issues the rebate in less than 60 days after project completion and paperwork, and says rebates commonly cover 30 to 50 percent of a conversion that costs $4 to $6 per square foot with a contractor.1
  • WCWCD requires 50% living plant cover at maturity in the converted area, counting each tree as 350 sq ft and each shrub or perennial as 35 sq ft, and existing trees inside the conversion area count.1
  • There is no approved plant list for the rebate; the program does not dictate species, only mature coverage.1
  • Every rebated conversion attaches a perpetual conservation easement, recorded with the Washington County Recorder, that restricts only the converted area and prohibits irrigated grass, spray irrigation, pools, ponds and water features there forever.1
1 more fact, with sources
  • WCWCD enforces the easement by aerial imagery; a violation brings written notice, 45 days to cure, then repayment of the full rebate plus administrative costs and 5 percent annual interest.1

Where this comes from

Every line above traces to a document we read in full. The number after a sentence points to the research below; hover it for the section. If you find a line wrong, tell us and we will fix it and say so.

  1. Landscape and hardscape research, August 2026 Compiled from Washington County Water Conservancy District program documents, its sample conservation easement and FAQ, Utah Water Savers, the 2023 USDA hardiness map, USU Extension, and St. George City Code, Title 10. 6 sections cited. Hover a number above for the section.
  2. WCWCD Water Efficient Landscape Program agreement, wcwcd.gov, retrieved 2 Sept 2026

Read before you decide

The rest of turf conversion and the rebate

The quote is the number. There is no second number.

Call (801) 680-6859

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