"Californians Keep Up With Joneses’ Water Use"

Neighbors know much more about each other than public authorities can hope to keep up with. In California, which again faces drought conditions, neighbors are encouraged to report overuse of water to authorities. People can see whose lawns are green (when they should be left to brown), hear sprinklers in the middle of the night, and see each other washing their cars by day. According to this article in the New York Times, tactics neighbors use include public and private shaming, posting photos of flourishing lawns to Twitter, calling water officials, and leaving reminders to conserve water on doorknobs.