Homeowners encouraged to slow use of irrigation systems during April

SEMINOLE COUNTY – April is Water Conservation Month across Florida.

Seminole County leaders stressed the importance of learning how to save water while keeping lawns and gardens healthy.

Water Conservation Month started 25 years ago in the state. This year, experts say it's especially important to limit water use, while we're in a drought, so pumping systems don't run out.

Experts say outdoor watering is responsible for 50 to 80% of all water usage in Florida. Some reports state lawns alone are responsible for 50% of it.

Megan Sladek, the mayor of Oviedo, says if too much water is used, the pumping system could reach its maximum and run out.

"Each city, each jurisdiction, has a limit to how much they can suck out. When you hit it, you are done," Sladek says. "There are some people that use water up to 12 feet of irrigation on their little yards in addition to the water that falls from the sky. So, we're probably talking about 18 feet of water for basic landscaping that does not require that much."

"It doesn’t necessarily mean our aquifer will be depleted completely of water, but it will be depleted of the threshold that we can pull from the ground, which then utilizes us to go and find alternate water sources from different means. Naturally, that comes with higher prices of treatment and not a lot of readily available water for us," Sandro Aganovic, the Water Conservation Coordinator in Seminole County, said.