HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. – In an effort to improve water pressure, Hillsborough County has instituted a one-day-a-week watering restriction for its South County residential and commercial customers.
The watering restriction takes effect Jan. 4, 2021 and ends Dec. 31, 2022.
All property owners in the designated area south of the Alafia River must adhere to the temporary irrigation ordinance, which was approved by the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners in December.
Irrigation use drives the peak potable water demand in South County, and steps must be taken to reduce irrigation demand to improve potable water pressure for customers.
The intention of the temporary ordinance is to redistribute customer water demand and reduce dangerously low pressure during peak morning periods. Low water pressure can also trigger regulatory precautionary boil water notices and impact fire hydrants used by Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. It is important to note that this change is not a result of drought conditions or water supply concerns, rather it is a distribution issue with the piping system.
In South County’s irrigation restricted area, all watering must be done between 8:30 a.m. and noon or between 6 p.m. and midnight on the designated watering day.
Irrigation of established lawns and landscapes is limited to one day a week on the following schedule:
- Addresses ending in 0 or 1 on Mondays
- Addresses ending in 2 or 3 on Tuesdays
- Addresses ending in 4 or 5 on Wednesdays
- Addresses ending in 6 or 7 on Thursdays
- Addresses ending in 8 or 9 on Fridays
- Locations with no address and locations with mixed addresses (such as office complexes and shopping centers) on Saturdays
These temporary restrictions apply to all properties within the South County designated area and most water sources, including private wells, ponds, or lakes used as alternate irrigation supply. Reclaimed water customers may irrigate any day of the week before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m., although these customers are encouraged to use only what is needed.
All other properties in unincorporated Hillsborough County remain on standard year-round, twice-a-week watering days and standard times.
There are several capital improvement projects in progress and in the planning stages to help alleviate water pressure issues over the next two years.
Visit HCFLGov.net/WaterRestrictions for more information, to view a map of the affected area, for an address lookup tool to determine if you are in the area, to sign up for email notifications of changes in water restrictions, and for other water conservation topics.
Call (813) 663-3295 for more information.