Lee County reminds unincorporated residents of water scheduling changes

LEE COUNTY, Fla. —

Residents in unincorporated Lee County, including Whiskey Creek, will be restricted to using their sprinklers only once a week starting next month.

Odd-numbered addresses will be allowed to water on Saturdays, while even-numbered ones can water on Sundays, with no watering permitted between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Warren Wright from Whiskey Creek expressed support for the restrictions, saying, "The whole concept of fertilizing your lawn and artificially watering it all the time, it's bad for the environment anyway. So you know what? People are just going to have to get used to the idea of just not having a fake green lawn. That's okay."

Daniel De La Torre, also from Whiskey Creek, noted the potential challenges for some residents, stating, "Changing to once-a-week watering might be a little more challenging to people who are not technically savvy because it involves me knowing where my sprinkler box is and being able to adjust it."

The county emphasized the importance of these restrictions, citing last year's particularly dry rainy season.

Dr. Don Duke from the Water School at Florida Gulf Coast University explained, "In a year when we get fewer hurricanes, we celebrate because we don't like hurricanes. It's a threat to human health, but in a year when we get less precipitation during the wet season, it's a drier period. We do have long-term climate change. We know that makes some difference, but even within those long-term trends, there's an enormous amount of variation."

Violations of the new watering schedule will result in a warning for the first offense, followed by fines. The county's goal is to conserve water and protect the aquifer, as irrigation can account for half of a home's water usage.

"It's got to be far better to take care of the actual ecosystem than somebody is lawn. This is a very important for all of Florida and Floridians, and all of the wildlife and the plant life that does exist here and does need those resources more," added Maryanne Elliott in Whiskey Creek.

The restrictions are set to end at the end of May, allowing residents to return to watering twice a week.

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