Gov. Spencer J. Cox issued an Executive Order on Thursday declaring a statewide state of emergency due to extreme drought conditions. The announcement shares that the declaration comes as snowpack peaked about three weeks early and was the lowest recorded since 1930. Currently, all 29 counties are in severe drought, with 22 counties experiencing extreme drought conditions. “Our snowpack provides 95% of Utah’s water supply,” shared Gov. Cox. “This winter, that supply fell far short of what Utah needs. We are now relying heavily on reservoir storage, which remains at 70% capacity thanks to careful management during wetter years. But those reserves are being drawn down faster than we’d like. I urge every Utahn to treat water as the precious resource it is.” The Executive Order activates the state Emergency Operations Plan and directs the state Drought Response Committee to review hardships caused by drought and recommend actions. Learn more about drought conditions at Drought.Utah.gov.
