US Drought causes lawn-watering ban in Austin, homeowners exploit loophole

[das_nut]

Driving to Brandi Gruis’s place in Austin, Texas, you pass block after block of little houses on brown, postage-stamp lawns. Then there’s her cul-de-sac: Big houses, acre-plus lots, and greener grass.

Brandi and her husband, Brian, moved here from Sioux City, South Dakota, last spring. "We realized shortly after we moved in," she recalls, "we were one of the few in the neighborhood not to have a well."

Like much of Texas, the city of Austin has had drought for the last few years. In response, the city has imposed restrictions on watering lawns -- and utility rates that make watering expensive. But homeowners in greener -- and wealthier -- parts of town have found a work-around: Digging their own wells.

- Marketplace Money.

Why the hell is it still socially acceptable to have a green lawn during a drought?

 

[Blobbenstein]

this planet is going down the loophole.

 

[beancounter]

When I lived in Phoenix AZ (essentially a desert), it was common for people to spend a lot of time, effort and money growing grass on their lawns.

We just used white stones in the yard, but we had a nice saguaro in the center.

 

[Kitties]

Makes me mad. Especially with the drought here in California.