Eighteen days ago, all watering of “institutional” ornamental turf with potable drinking was supposed to cease throughout California.

Sacramento issued the emergency mandate in a bid to accomplish a 20 percent reduction in water use as California desperately seeks to stretch water supplies as the state slips deeper into a third year of drought.

Yet this past weekend, a drive through Manteca showed rampant non-compliance and even violations of 7-year-old City of Manteca conservation rules. And some of the violations were by the biggest municipal water users — the City of Manteca as well as the Manteca Unified School District.

On Powers Avenue at 2 a.m. on Saturday, the sound of water running into a storm drain was powered by ornamental turf irrigation flowing down a driveway and over sidewalk and into the gutter.

It was still running 10 minutes later.

There is a mature tree on one side of the lawn. The state allows for exemptions of ornamental turf if it is the only way to water trees and shrubs.

However, the fire station has been flooding the gutter for years in violation of the city’s rules that others get fined for when the municipal water cop is out and about.

There is also the issue of whether the city has a moral obligation to stub off irrigation of shrubs and such as in front of the actual building and let the lawn die.

A neighbor a block away has let their lawn die and keeps trees healthy by using several buckets of water every week to water them. As a result, hundreds of gallons of water are saved each week.

Across the street, the school district also irrigates its playing fields in the early morning hours where water runs into the gutter well in excess of 5 minutes max allowed under city rules.

The state has made exceptions for turf used on playing fields and for other community uses such as the area being irrigated at Lincoln School. Gutter flooding isn’t allowed.

On Sunday, at 6:15 p.m. large swaths of ornamental grass in front of the Manteca Online Academy was being irrigated with water running off into the gutter.

There were dozens of examples of turf only areas in front of restaurants and stores that were not only being irrigated using drinking water in violation of the state mandate, but they were being watered between noon and 6 p.m. which has been illegal for years.

Interim City Manager Toni Lindgren on Monday indicated the fire station has been notified of the issue. She added the public works staff is now in the process of surveying all municipal turf.

Those areas that are 100 percent ornamental grass will have water irrigation ended. The city also will weigh if there are areas where ornamental turf is connected with other landscaping irrigation and if it can be reasonably stubbed in a manner to stop watering grass while keeping shrubs and trees alive.

The city noted they intend to lead by example and are scrambling to get their own house in order before roiling out an amendment to a municipal ordinance on July 19 that will give the city teeth to enforce the state mandate with fines up to $500 per infraction.

If it secures a four-fifths vote by the Manteca City Council, the measures will go into effective immediately

The city is also working to upgrade its meter reading platform to “greatly assist” in identifying properties that aren’t following the state mandate and provide greater opportunities for water conservation.

Meanwhile, they intend to contact violators to make sure they understand the mandate.

A utility bill insert will go out as well.

Manteca Unified noted “throughout the district irrigation systems for turf have been reduced to run three days a week and not during restricted times, per city ordinances. According to the California Water Board, non-functional turf “does not include school fields, sports fields, and areas regularly used for civic or community events,” and “does not ban the irrigation of trees or other non-turf plantings.”

The MUSD released added, “the district will water only where necessary to maintain athletic fields, trees, and plantings.”

Victoria Brunn, who oversees community outreach, stressed the district will strive to meet the spirit of the mandate. That could mean areas where there is a large ornamental turf area that has shrubs and trees that is on a system might be stubbed off if it makes sense.

Both the city and school district have shallow wells in some locations that tap into non-potable water that can be used for ornamental turf irrigation as does East  Union Cemetery among others.

But city officials Monday  also said they want to make sure the shallow water table with nonportable water is also not overdrafted as they can lead to additional long-range water supply issues.