WAUKESHA, WI — Over-sprinkling your lawn in Waukesha could put a drain on your finances.
The Waukesha Water Utility recently referred a sprinkling violation to the Waukesha Police Department for investigation and a possible citation, according to a press release.
The WWU customer had previously received three notifications for violating the city’s sprinkling ordinance and sprinkling during unauthorized periods.
The minimum fine related to such a citation is $172 and that amount only increases with subsequent offenses.
City officials developed the sprinkling ordinance in 2006 as part of an ongoing water conservation program, to protect local water resources and reduce demand during peak hours.
“The ordinance prohibits the use of sprinklers during the daytime hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., when up to 40 percent of the water applied can be lost to evaporation,” said Mary Adelmeyer, the water utility’s customer relations representative. “It’s also more expensive for the utility to pump water during the day than to pump at night. People who water during the day are passing those higher costs along to everyone in the form of higher water rates and wasting their own money because of daytime evaporation.”
For additional information on the sprinkling ordinance, as well as other ideas on how to conserve water, visit the Waukesha Water Utility’s website at www.waukeshawater.com.