By Tracie Sullivan, For Iron County Today
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox declared a statewide drought emergency Thursday as worsening water conditions spread across the state.
Speaking at Little Dell Reservoir near Emigration Canyon, Cox warned that record heat and historically low snowpack are contributing to one of Utah’s worst drought years in history.
“We can’t control the weather, but we can control the tap,” Cox said while urging Utahns to reduce water use heading into summer.
Utah is coming off its warmest winter on record, according to the governor’s office and state water officials.
Snowpack levels were so poor that officials have referred to this year as a “no-pack” winter rather than a snowpack year.
Nearly all of Utah is now experiencing drought conditions. Twenty-two of the state’s 29 counties are classified in extreme drought, while Uintah County in northeastern Utah has reached the “exceptional drought” category, the most severe designation used by the U.S. Drought Monitor.
While Utah has faced repeated drought years in recent memory, this year’s emergency declaration comes before the official start of summer as state officials warn conditions are deteriorating earlier than normal.
State officials said Utah’s reservoirs remain around 70% full due to water carried over from wetter years. However, smaller reservoirs and stream systems are already coming under growing strain.
“The numbers are clear. Utah is in one of its worst droughts in history,” Joel Williams, director of the Utah Division of Water Resources, said during Thursday’s briefing.
The emergency declaration activates Utah’s emergency operations plan, increases coordination between state and federal agencies and opens the door for financial assistance and emergency resources connected to drought impacts.
The order also calls on cities, irrigation companies and water providers to increase conservation efforts and encourages residents to reduce outdoor watering, repair leaks and improve irrigation efficiency.
Cox also referenced the growing impacts on Utah agriculture, noting farmers and ranchers are often among the first affected by reduced water allocations.
The drought declaration comes as Utah continues to see major proposed AI and data center expansion projects, including large-scale developments in several counties throughout the state.
Some residents and environmental advocates have questioned how future industrial water and power demands could affect the state during prolonged drought conditions, though developers have argued newer facilities are designed to minimize water use through closed-loop cooling systems.
The statewide drought declaration comes less than a week after Cox issued a separate emergency declaration tied to late-season freezes that damaged crops in several Utah counties.
In posts shared on X following Thursday’s announcement, Cox again urged conservation efforts, writing that Utahns must work together to stretch the state’s limited water supply through what forecasters expect could be an unusually hot and dry summer.