Hillsborough officials ramp up watering restriction enforcement amid dry conditions

As dry conditions persist across Tampa Bay, Hillsborough County officials are ramping up water conservation efforts. If you're not careful, you could end up getting hit with hefty fines for running your sprinkler system when you're not supposed to.

Hillsborough County code enforcement officers spent Thursday morning patrolling the Riverview area from 4:30 a.m. to sunrise, looking for property owners breaking the rules on irrigation.

FOX 13 joined an officer for a ride-along and within less than an hour's time, the officer we were riding with found nearly a dozen violations in a single subdivision: people running their sprinklers when they shouldn't be, according to county code.

Typically, during April and May officers say they often find as many as 20 to 30 violations each before the sun even comes up. County officials told FOX 13 News that May tends to be the highest water-use month because temperatures are rising but the rainy season has not started yet.

READ: Deputies search for thieves stealing trailers from Hillsborough County businesses

While patrolling a residential area, the code enforcement officer stops their county-issued vehicle, takes down the violator's address, snaps a photo for evidence, and keeps moving before sending out the violation notice later.

"This is an environmental concern," said Jon-Paul Lavandeira, division director of Hillsborough County Code Enforcement. "This is something that we're all trying to get to the same end point with. And the way we can do that is to follow the ordinances and the codes. We are all in this together, it makes sense for all of us to do so."

According to Hillsborough County's Water & Sewer division, year-round conservation measures limit lawn and landscape watering to specific allowed days and times based on the property address. If your address ends in 6 or 7 for example, Thursday is your watering day, but only between 8:30 a.m. and noon or 6 p.m. and midnight. Find your watering days here.  

"It is the responsibility of every resident and property owner to abide by the Water Use Ordinance and stay apprised of current watering restrictions," the county says on its website.

"If the property has an automated sprinkler system, it is the property owners’ responsibility to ensure that it is maintained and in working order, the irrigation timer is set to the appropriate dates and times, and the rain shut-off device and battery back-up are working properly." Find how to set your irrigation controller here.

You can also sign up here to get water restriction notifications and water news.

The first violation is a $100 penalty. Each offense after that goes up by another $100s. On your fifth offense and every offense afterward, it's $500 per violation.