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City utilities warn of snow-drought conditions, urge early conservation and institutional cutbacks
Summary
Salt Lake City water officials told the council that 2026 snow water equivalent stands at roughly 60% of median, streamflow forecasts range from ~29% to ~76% depending on creek, and staff urged the council to adopt proactive conservation measures—particularly for institutional users—before thresholds are reached.
Salt Lake City’s public-utilities leadership told the City Council on March 10 that a persistent snow drought and unusually warm winter have left the region’s snow-water equivalent (SWE) at roughly 60% of median for the water season, prompting calls for proactive conservation.
Laura Briefer, director of public utilities, introduced the water-resources and hydrology team and framed the technical briefing. Hydrologists and resource managers said the city’s major drinking-water tributaries are projecting variable runoff this year: Parley’s Creek was projected near 29% of average, while Little Cottonwood Creek was nearer 76% of average. Staff said soil moisture is relatively high after a rainy winter, which should improve runoff efficiency, and federal reservoirs such as Deer Creek are expected to end the season close to normal. Nevertheless, officials described the overall situation as a snow drought driven by higher temperatures and below-normal precipitation outlooks for the coming months.
Officials also updated the council on Great Salt Lake levels: the 2022 record low was 4,188.5 feet and the lake measured approximately 4,192.1 feet at the time of the briefing, roughly a foot below last year. Staff emphasized the lake’s sensitivity to outdoor water use and evaporation.
Council members pressed officials on whether the city should move earlier to stricter drought stages. Briefer and staff said the city’s Water Shortage Contingency Plan uses staged responses: stage 1 is voluntary conservation; stage 2 begins mandatory reductions for government and institutional customers; higher stages impose broader mandatory restrictions. Staff said they are preparing stage-two recommendations that would require government and institutional customers to reduce consumption and that outreach to institutional managers (Universities, large religious institutions) is ongoing.
On the Colorado River compact, staff reminded council members that Salt Lake City accesses central-Utah-project water (roughly 20,000 acre-feet via Metropolitan Water District wholesale arrangements) and that outcomes from interstate negotiations—handled at the state and federal level—could require upper-basin adjustments. The city said it is monitoring negotiations and building conservative supply projections into planning.
What’s next: staff will continue outreach to institutional water users, finalize stage-two recommendations for mandatory institutional reductions if thresholds indicate it, and coordinate with council members on federal outreach regarding Colorado River/compact issues.
