Agricultural Rebates & Programs

The AIEP offers opportunities to local producers to improve on-farm irrigation system efficiencies.

Qualified participants must be a customer of a Water Authority member agency and irrigating one or more acres of agricultural property using municipal supplies.  Participants begin with an on-site evaluation and receive a detailed report with current irrigation system efficiency levels and recommended improvements that integrate efficient irrigation technology components and irrigation scheduling practices.   Following the evaluation, participants may apply to participate in MWD’s Water Savings Incentive Program, or take advantage of rebates through the Water Authority’s LEAVES program. 

Program participants in unincorporated areas who implement the recommended site improvements to achieve an estimated 0.2 or greater increase in emission uniformity (EU) or distribution uniformity (DU) or greater are eligible for rebates*.  The rebate is up to $550 per acre of land (up to the cost of equipment) with a maximum of $5000 per project. 

If you would like to schedule a site evaluation or have previously received a site evaluation and would like to confirm your eligibility for a rebate, contact Mission Resource Conservation District at (760) 728-1332.

*Additional program details:

This program is scheduled to end in December 2025 or when funds are exhausted, whichever is sooner.  Rebates are first come, first served with no reservations.  Funding for this project has been provided in full or in part from the County of San Diego’s Watershed Protection Program, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s Member Agency Administered Program, and the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014 through an agreement with the State Department of Water Resources.

These free on-site evaluations are available for agricultural properties with at least one acre of irrigated crops or trees. Emission uniformity and pressure readings are determined for each system and recommendations are provided along with crop data and technical information about the types of irrigation equipment in use.  To schedule, contact  Mission Resource Conservation District at (760) 728-1332.

The San Diego County Water Authority has partnered with the County of San Diego Watershed Protection Program to provide residents and businesses in unincorporated San Diego County with new and enhanced rebates.

With the Waterscape Rebate Program, property owners can receive financial incentives to: 

• Replace high-water use turf with watersmart, native plants 
• Install weather-based irrigation controllers 
• Install a rain barrel, rain cistern, rain garden, or other rain-saving feature 
• Install rain gutters 
• Pump your septic tank and prevent costly repairs 
• Transform large turf areas with water-wise landscaping (minimum of 20,000 sq. ft. of turf) (Commercial properties only)
• Install irrigation upgrades recommended by an expert during a free Agricultural Irrigation Efficiency evaluation (Agricultural properties only)
• Include a dot point to state, “Free support for SoCal WaterSmart participants

Weather-based irrigation controllers can reduce water use outdoors. Unlike standard timers that turn on sprinklers at set intervals, “smart” controllers use weather data and site information such as plant type and sprinkler system output to adjust watering times and frequency. Professional installation is recommended because proper set-up usually requires knowledge of soils, precipitation rates, slope and other landscape characteristics.

Incentives from SoCal WaterSmart start at $80 per controller for residential sites with less than one acre of landscaping. For larger residential sites, incentives start at $35 per station. Rebates cannot exceed the purchase price of the controllers.