SALT LAKE CITY — The Natural Resource Conservation Service described this year as "staggeringly anomalous" in terms of the lack of snow available to supply water to Utah residents, according to their latest report.
Utah's entire reservoir system can hold 32.5 million acre-feet of water. Lake Powell alone accounts for 72% of that total capacity — and it primarily supplies water and power to downstream states, not Utah.
Remove Lake Powell from the equation, and the state's remaining reservoir capacity drops to just over 9 million acre feet. Factor out Flaming Gorge Reservoir — another regionally significant storage facility that supplies little of Utah's local water needs — and the picture becomes even starker.
To put those numbers in perspective: if Utah's total water storage capacity were a one-gallon container, the state currently holds the equivalent of about a quart and a half. Strip out Lake Powell and Flaming Gorge, and that drops to roughly 14 ounces — just under 2 cups.
State, federal agencies recommend emergency drought declaration:
Local reservoirs, which are the ones that most directly serve Utah communities, sit at about 71% of capacity. But water levels have already peaked for the season and will continue to decline until at least fall.
A map from the Utah Division of Water Resources shows which reservoirs are under the most stress. Reservoirs in central Utah — including those serving Sanpete, Sevier, Carbon, and Emery counties — are among the most critically low. The state has identified dams in the Sevier River Basin and in the Cedar City and Beaver areas as the worst off.
The situation in Emery County has already prompted action. The town of Emery has cut off secondary water service in response to declining water levels.
Using the same one-gallon analogy, most of these critical local reservoirs hold the equivalent of less than a teaspoon of water — a supply that can diminish quickly as the hottest months of the year begin.
Below you'll find my breakdown of how much of Utah's hypothetical gallon your local reservoir holds.
