Correction:

Irrigation times reported in Wednesday’s Eagle were incorrect for the city of Marco Island.

While they are the times adhered to by the rest of Collier County, Marco Island will be allowed to water based on the following schedule under Phase II restrictions:

Property addresses with the last digit 1 and 2 water Monday and Thursday.

Addresses ending in 3 and 4 water Wednesday and Saturday.

Addresses ending in 5 and 6 water Thursday and Monday.

Addresses ending in 7 and 8 water Saturday and Tuesday.

Addresses ending in 9 and 0 water Sunday and Wednesday.

No irrigation is permitted on Fridays. Allowable times are 4 to 8 a.m., or 4 to 8 p.m.. Property owners may water both days allowed for their address, but must pick one time on each day.

Additional restrictions:

- New sod or landscaping in place for 30 days or less can be watered from 2 to 8 a.m., Thursday through Saturday.

- New sod or landscaping in place for 31 to 60 days may be watered from 2 to 8 a.m., Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.

- Watering is permitted for 10 minutes after fertilizer application.

- Stressed plants can be watered 10 minutes per day using a single hose and a trigger nozzle.

- Drip, bubble and micro-jet systems that apply water directly to root plant zones may be used at any time.

- No restrictions on car or boat washing, though boat rinsing is recommended for no more than 15 minutes after coming out of salt water.

- No restrictions on pressure washing, though low-volume equipment is recommended for use.

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It’s been said that timing is everything. In some cases, such as the recent lifting of water restrictions, timing appears odd.

The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) approved the city of Marco’s request to loosen water restrictions from Phase III watering to Phase II. The twice a week watering variance for Marco Island was approved in February to take effect April 15 through July 15.

“That decision will become a moot point,” said Marco Island’s code compliance chief, Eric Wardle.

The variance becomes “moot” because SFWMD’s governing board decided last week to give most of the district’s 16 counties, including all of Collier County, a reprieve from Phase III watering restrictions beginning Friday, April 18. The transition from one-day-per-week landscape irrigation restrictions to two-day-a-week watering was made due to improved regional water resources.

The decision gives Marco Island a three-day head start into Phase II restrictions and then essentially voids the city’s variance, said Clarence Tears, director of the Big Cypress Basin, the local arm of SFWMD.

Tears said higher than average rainfalls in February, March and into the beginning of April led to the restriction changes.

“It all depends on Mother Nature. April is usually the driest month, the peak of the dry season ... But these cold fronts have dropped a lot of rain on us and allowed us to lift restrictions,” he said.

Rainfalls were one-third of an inch higher than average in March and an inch higher in February.

However, overall rainfall since the start of the dry season, typically November through June, is currently 30 percent lower than average in Lee and Collier counties.

April is also water conservation month in Florida and SFWMD officials say that the change in restrictions should not change efforts to conserve water.

“It’s about education. We got through these last few months. We’ve learned that we can get by on once a week watering. A lot of lawns got a little brown, but then the root systems got stronger and deeper. A lot of this is about education,” Tears said.

Collier County does not rely on Lake Okeechobee, which is still four feet below the historical average level.

Collier County relies exclusively on local rainfall and water retention wells, Tears said.

Marco Island has become increasingly self-sufficient due to its one billion gallons of water stored in off-island wells at the city’s Marco Lakes facility.

“It’s almost like a bank account. (Marco) is taking the surface water during the wet season and storing it underground to meet demands during the dry season. The wells and other alternative water resources are drought-tolerant. Marco is doing really good things to protect their resources,” Tears said.

Another aspect that SFWMD board members considered when loosening the restrictions was the economic impact on public works departments.

“The utility structure charges customers based on volume to pay for their infrastructure and maintenance costs. Phase restrictions decrease the amount of water their selling, so even with Collier County adding a surcharge when restrictions are in effect, volume is cut by 30 to 40 percent. That’s a significant impact,” Tears explained.

Some Marco residents will also decrease their odds of paying significant fines and fees to city Code Enforcement.

“We’ve had reasonable compliance, but we find many violations occurring in the off-hours,” Wardle said.

There were 746 reported violations since the restrictions took effect last year. Of those violations, 43 were second-offense repeat violations that come with a $90 ticket and fine. Wardle said most violations are residential properties whose timers either unknowingly reset themselves due to a power outage or went unnoticed by residents during middle-of-the-night hours.

Last month, seven violations out of 52 were second-time occurrences yielding a $90 fine. Two cases went to the code enforcement board this month, bringing those offenders up to $250 per day fines. If they are found guilty and remain in violation, fines will be assessed up to $500 per day.

Code enforcement officials reported declining violations almost every month since restrictions were in place. In December 2007 there were 141 violations, compared to only 52 violations in March 2008.

“It’s a bit misleading because (in December) we were targeting water compliance and drought conditions,” Wardle explained.

Even with loosened restrictions SFWMD officials suggest that lawns can take as little as two hours of irrigation per week, or no watering if it has rained.

Phase II watering restrictions for all property sizes in Collier County and Marco Island allow for two days a week lawn irrigation on the following schedule:

– Residents with odd-numbered street addresses may water lawns and landscapes on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 12 a.m. to 10 a.m. and/or from 4 p.m. to 11:59 p.m.

– Residents with even-numbered street addresses, or with no street address, may water lawns and landscapes on Thursdays and Sundays from 12 a.m. to 10 a.m. and/or from 4 p.m. to 11:59 p.m.

For the most efficient use of water, residents should avoid irrigating during both time periods on the same day.

This schedule remains in effect until SFWMD makes another change or Marco Island applies for another variance.

More details about water restrictions may be found on the South Florida Water Management District Web site www.sfwmd.gov.

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