Jeremy Madsen is chief executive officer of the Greenbelt Alliance, a Bay Area nonprofit that works to protect open space and focus new development on existing urbanized areas. https://www.newsdeeply.com/water/contributor/jeremy-madsen/rss en Innovation Thu, 17 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0000 Jeremy Madsen https://www.newsdeeply.com/water/community/2015/12/17/what-is-smart-growth-a-water-conservation-tool https://www.newsdeeply.com/water/community/2015/12/17/what-is-smart-growth-a-water-conservation-tool Water and land use are inextricably linked. If you care about the drought, you’d best start paying attention to your planning commission, city council and board of supervisors. Because local government decisions on land use are where the rubber meets the road on long-term water demand in California.