Drought coordinator weighs in on declining reservoir levels

JORDANELLE RESERVOIR, WASATCH COUNTY — As reservoir water levels continued to drop heading into the final weeks of summer, the state’s drought coordinator said Tuesday water restrictions could potentially return as early as next year depending on how much the dry pattern persists into the fall and winter.

Laura Haskell with the Utah Division of Water Resources told KSL TV an anemic or even average winter could result in varying degrees of water restrictions in 2026. However, she acknowledged a strong winter could potentially change everything.

“How next year plays out could really matter how full our reservoirs are,” Haskell said. “We do rely — especially in these more populated areas — on multi-year reservoirs, so if we use a lot of water in one year, we may not be able to water our lawns the next year. It’s just how comfortable you want to be with the future, because we don’t know what the future is going to hold.”

Haskell said long-range forecasts were undecided about how strong the coming winter will be.

“It also depends, actually, on how good the fall is, because if our soil stays really, really dry, then even a good winter won’t have as much water get to our rivers and our lakes,” Haskell said.

Haskell said current reservoir levels are lower compared to other years.

“We have dropped about 21% since the first of June,” Haskell said. “That’s more than we usually drop over those summer months. That could be for a variety of reasons. We’ll need to, kind of, go back and look at it after the fact, but it’s been very hot, we haven’t had a lot of storms, and use may have been higher.”

According to Haskell, the entire state of Utah is in a drought, and 80% of the state is considered to be in a “severe drought or worse.”

At Jordanelle Reservoir Tuesday, local Brad Ouimet acknowledged the reservoir levels were somewhat disconcerting.

“It doesn’t look good, and I’ve had multiple people tell me they’re concerned about it,” Ouimet said.

Ouimet said, however, that the area had seen far lower reservoir levels and worse drought conditions — a reminder to him that the current appearances of reservoirs does not necessarily point to the worst-case scenario on the horizon.

“To be honest, I feel like we’re doing okay,” Ouimet said. “This doesn’t look as bad as it seems.”

Haskell encouraged anyone concerned about the water picture to consult slowtheflow.org for pointers on how best to conserve.

She said ultimately reducing the amount of water used outside has a greater impact.

“We use more than 60% of our water outdoors,” Haskell said. "By cutting down how much we water, that makes a big difference.”

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