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If you live in Los Angeles, you might be able to earn a few extra bucks and leave behind the dreaded job of mowing the lawn in one fell swoop. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) has a program that actually pays property owners for eliminating turfgrass from their landscape.

Traditional lawns may be aesthetically pleasing, but they also require lots of maintenance and copious amounts of water. Although the City of Los Angeles really doesn't care that mowing the lawn is ruining your weekend, it does care about excess water usage, and the water-starved city is on a mission to conserve.

The program, which is application-based and requires projects to be approved, pays residential owners $2 for every square foot of turf that is replaced by approved drought-resistant landscaping. Since most of that money probably goes into the cost of new landscaping materials and the labor to get the job done, you might not see a profit right away. But it's the long-term water savings that really matter.

Plus, you get to sell the mower and put the money to better use. Maybe you could buy a nice gas grill now that you'll have a little more weekend time on your hands.

Tim Layton is a home and DIY blogger for Popular Mechanics. Follow him on Twitter: @RemodelingGuy