SLC Turf Trade

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Trade up to turfgrass that uses 40% less water while staying green all summer!

Salt Lake City (SLC) Public Utilities Water customers can trade their existing turfgrass with TWCA Qualified turf available through Salt Lake City Public Utility Water Conservation.

The program is simple:

Trade up. Pre-order your TWCA Qualified Drought Tolerant turf seed here. (You will receive a follow-up email guiding you through your pick up process)

Dry out. Install the TWCA qualified seed; either by fully replacing, or by overseeding into the existing lawn.

Stay green. Drought tolerant landscapes begin with the plants used. Combining Water Efficient management and water efficient plants can reduce the water demand of landscapes by up to 50%.

This public-private partnership is designed to conserve water and preserve the functional beauty and natural brilliance of living turfgrass. Currently, landscape water use in the Salt Lake City area ranges between 29 and 35 inches of water per summer season. To compare, Kentucky bluegrass, widely misconceived as being an exceptionally thirsty plant requires 24 to 25 inches.

TWCA Qualified turf requires approximately 18 inches.

Successfully converting existing turf to TWCA Qualified turf will save up to 3.7 million gallons of water. That is just the savings from this pilot project alone! By participating in this project you are making a positive change in your community and, by showing what is possible, you are affecting that change in communities around the world.

The Center for Water Efficient Landscaping (CWEL) is creating educational content to help participants transition their turf to more water efficient turf cultivars! Finally, to ensure landscapes are being watered effectively, participants can use the TWCA Irrigation Calculator to find their ideal runtime!

Donating to TWCA allows the program to continue evaluating and identifying the most drought tolerant turfgrasses of each species. Without donor support TWCA could not quantify the water use of turfgrasses in the managed environment and qualify them through our rigorous process.

Updates

50% Water Use Reduction November 30, 2021

SLC Public Utilities Water Conservationist, Stephanie Duer is reporting a 50% reduction in water use at the Concord Lifting Station in the months following the landscape conversion. This conversion incorporates a number of different landscaping practices to maximize water efficiency. Common landscape tactics for increasing water efficiency include hydrozoning, or grouping plants according to their water need, turf area reduction, and optimizing irrigation design and hardwater for water efficiency.

The 50% reduction in water use demonstrates the remarkable impact of plant selection, landscape design, and irrigation efficiency. Most current water savings her stem from landscape design and irrigation optimization. The third aspect, plant selection has yet to realize its conservation potential. The longer return time on plant selection often times puts it off the list of feasible landscape conversion practices. Here, though, a landscape has the opportunity to feasibly, and practically deliver water conservation beyond 50%for the duration of the landscape lifecycle. Beyond the reduction in water, retaining turf in the design preserves the ecological benefits of the landscape.