Alberta towns offer incentives to replace grass lawns with drought-resistant alternatives

Drought conditions in Alberta have led the towns of Cochrane and Okotoks to offer residents financial incentives to replace their lawns with alternatives that use less water.

The Alberta towns of Cochrane and Okotoks are offering incentives to encourage people to buy items that will help reduce the amount of water used outside.

Cochrane resident Rebecca Carroll’s front yard used to be covered in grass that needed watering. It now brims with rock material, mulch and drought resistant plants.

“It’s a nice hobby. I like doing the different projects. I no longer have the need to do any irrigation other than tiny amounts in very hot times for the plant materials,” said Carroll, who is an operations services technologist with the Town of Cochrane.

Carroll is one of the many people in the community who took advantage of the town’s water conservation program.

“I love it and it’s something you can add to year after year,” Carroll said. “It’s a lot of work to remove the sod. I always say to residents the best time to remove the sod is to never put it in.”

The town of Cochrane offers six rebates to residents who want to cut back on water use, including the lawn alternative rebate.

Okotoks has similar incentives.

“Every year, we usually sell out of the program. Last year, the program sold out by July. This year we’ve already used 40 per cent of the allotted funds,” said Jinny Toffelmire environment team leader with the Town of Okotoks.