Las Vegas officials limit size of swimming pools amid serious drought

Facing a serious drought, Las Vegas is diving into action in an effort to reduce the amount of water waste.

With the Lake Mead reservoir drying up, Clark County officials voted to shrink the size of swimming pools to no more than 600 square feet. 

The largest county in Nevada has about 200,000 residential swimming pools for 2.4 million people. “Having a pool in Las Vegas is like having a second car. It’s that common,” said Kevin Kraft, owner of a family custom pool design company. 

A projected 3.2 million gallons of water will be saved in the first year and could increase to 32 million by the year 2032. 

The Southern Nevada Water Authority is working to put the measure into effect this year. This rule will only apply to new pools and spas at single-family homes. 

“We believe it is possible to provide water for human needs while also conserving water for plants and wildlife,” Jaina Moan, director of Nature Conservancy in Nevada told the Las Vegas Sun. “We need a new way of managing our water and rivers, and this is a step in the right direction.”

Nevada has other plans to conserve water, such as removing lawns and replacing them with artificial grass that doesn’t need to be watered. A new law that takes affect in 2027 will ban ‘non-functional’ grass from housing developments. This will not include parks, golf courses or single-family homes.