You’ve probably come across more stories about water woes in California than you can recall, so you may feel you’ve had enough for a while. I understand. … But there is one indisputable fact that keeps surfacing in the conversations I have about California water that feels like something of a beacon. The first time I heard it, it came as quite a surprise. Over the last half century or so, millions more people have moved to greater Los Angeles. … And during this same time, Angelenos have been consuming less water. … So, how did this happen? The answer speaks to a general truth about progress, which, in big, messy democracies, tends to occur not all at once but in incremental, often unsexy ways, mostly out of the news cycle. In this case the shift has involved some simple, practical, boring fixes, like better plumbing, alongside larger transformations in social norms, policies and politics.

Other water conservation news:

• Bureau of Reclamation: News release: Reclamation invests over $33M in drought resiliency projects in the West