Lawn Watering Wrongs Will Cost You More Green

Turn on that hose during the day and you may find you've been hosed--the LA City Council unanimously approved a change to the outdoor water usage ordinance yesterday that calls for one extra hour of banned watering time and double the fine.

Between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. residents may not water their lawns; watering must take place before or after and can only run 15 minutes. Also, it is illegal to hose down your sidewalk and driveway, and the hose you use to wash your car must have an automatic shut-off nozzle.

Get caught, and "residential DWP customers who violate the rules will be fined $100, which is double the old fine of $50 for a first-time offense," reports cbs2.com. Get caught and you're a business--that fine just got "quadrupled to $200 from $50." Keep getting caught and you're going to need a bridge to help you over those trouble waters, because "repeat residential offenders can be fined up to $300 and commercial customers up to $600." Also part of the plan: Water will only show up on your table at a restaurant if you ask for it, and hotels and motels must give their guests the choice to re-use their room's sheets and towels.

Photo by ( krikit ) via Flickr