ST. GEORGE — Over 250 volunteers across Washington County came out Thursday to rip up water-guzzling sod and replace it with more water-friendly landscaping in an effort to promote wiser water use.

Across the county and parts of the state, people clad in white T-shirts with “Flip Blitz” on them gathered at various spots in Ivins, St. George, Washington City and elsewhere to begin the process of sod removal and replacement.

“We’re going around removing non-functional grass,” Zach Renstrom, general manager of the Washington County Water Conservancy District, said while visiting the Washington City Cemetery where turf was being removed. “We’re in the process of removing that and converting the landscaping to more desert-friendly landscaping.”

An estimated 7,000 square feet of sod that sat alongside the road was removed from the Washington City Cemetery. Another 12,000 square feet of sod was replaced at Nisson Park across town.

Combined with sod that had been replaced in Washington City over the last year, some 33,000 square-feet total has been replaced with water-efficient landscaping. The change is estimated to save up to 2 million gallons of water in Washington City alone.

“We’re replacing the area of park strip with bushes and plants and ground cover that are not aggressive water consumers like grass is,” Washington City Mayor Kress Staheli said.

The “non-functional grass” being removed across the state is turf that serves little purpose beyond being decorative, Staheli said. If the only time it is stepped on is when it’s mowed, it needs to go, he said.

Removing non-functional grass is gaining speed in Southern Utah, according to the water district.

St. George, Washington City, Santa Clara and Ivins recently removed 109,000 square feet of grass and have plans to remove another 367,000 square feet in the next year. Once completed, the cities will have removed nearly 600,000 square feet of non-functional grass.

These cities, along with Hurricane and Toquerville joined with the Washington County Water Conservancy District for Thursday’s statewide water conservation awareness campaign. The Sunbrook Homeowners Association and individual residences in St. George also participated.

Over 115,000 square feet of non-functional turf was removed and replaced in Washington County on Thursday, making up the bulk – an estimated 85% – of the sod replaced in the state that day.

“Washington County is a leader in water conservation,” Candice Hasenyager, director of the Utah Division of Water Resources, said in a press release. “The county’s efforts have extended a finite water resource to create one of the fastest growing communities in America.”

The landscape conversions that took place Thursday are estimated to save 4 million gallons of water annually.

Locations in Washington County where turf was replaced include:

• 48,000 square feet from Gubler Park in Santa Clara.
• 43,000 square feet from Sunbrook HOA in St. George.
• 12,000 square feet from Nisson Park in Washington City.
• 7,000 square feet from Washington City Cemetery in Washington City.
• 4,225 square feet from Unity Park in Ivins.
• 1,000 square feet from city offices in Toquerville.
• 442 square feet from residential properties in St George.

The turf replacement was funded by the participating municipalities and the water district, according to county water officials.

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