Homeowners in northern Utah can pocket $50 for every shade tree they plant as part of a water-smart landscaping project, up to 10 trees per year.

The Central Utah Water Conservancy District (CUWCD) and the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District (JVWCD) both offer the rebate, branded a "treebate," through the CUWCD residential rebates portal at utahwatersavers.com. CUWCD's program also includes turf-replacement rebates of up to $3 per square foot and a switch-to-drip irrigation rebate of $1 per square foot.

Eligibility and funding vary by city, according to CUWCD's website. Residents should check the portal to confirm their city participates before buying trees.

The JVWCD program carries an additional requirement: the tree planting must be part of a qualifying turf replacement, drip-irrigation conversion or new construction project, according to the district's program page. Trees must measure at least 1 inch in caliper at purchase, reach a minimum of 12 feet at maturity and be drip-irrigated.

The rebates come as Alpine and Lehi face tight water supplies. Alpine City Administrator Shane Sorensen told the city council in February that the area was experiencing "another historically low precipitation year," with snowpack at 51% of normal. Lehi was under Phase II water restrictions as of its May 2026 newsletter, limiting outdoor watering to two days per week with at least 48 hours between cycles.

Alpine's Water Citizen Advisory Committee listed a planned open house featuring CUWCD's residential rebates program in its April 2026 meeting minutes, signaling local interest in the incentives.

Diane Pataki, chief scientist and vice president of science with the National Wildlife Federation, found that adding trees to a landscape can actually lower its total water needs. Shade reduces how much water the surrounding lawn demands, even without other changes, Pataki said in a KUER 90.1 report published through the Utah News Collaborative.

"We found that adding trees to landscapes can lower the water requirement of the landscape, even if you don't do anything else," Pataki said.

Residents can apply at utahwatersavers.com. No application deadline has been announced, but the districts' websites note that available funding varies by city and could run out.