- Utah's statewide snowpack hit 0 inches, putting an end to a record-low snowpack season.
- Reservoirs are 68% full, down from 86% last year, amid severe and extreme drought.
- Hydrologists hope for more rain and mild temperatures this summer.
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's record-low snowpack season has essentially now reached its end, but not before "setting the stage for limited water supply" for the remainder of the year, federal hydrologists warn.
Utah's statewide snowpack average officially hit 0 inches of snow water equivalent on Friday, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service data, meaning there is very little to no measurable snowmelt left to count. Small storms over the past few months helped drag out the snowmelt closer to normal, but it still reached 0 inches more than a week before its June 14 median average.
This year's state average peaked at 8.3 inches, which was slightly above half of the median peak average and the lowest in nearly a century of data collection. It also peaked a month earlier than normal, following a record-warm March.
This year's poor snowpack, a byproduct of a record-warm winter, was followed by a quirky spring that didn't help conditions. Utah experienced its second-warmest and 24th driest meteorological spring on record, according to new National Centers for Environmental Information data.
Utah's lakes and reservoirs failed to gain much from either season. Utah's reservoir system is now 68% full, down from 86% this time last year and 7 percentage points below the median average for June. Every region outside of southwest Utah, which dealt with a record-low snowpack last year, experienced lower reservoir storage as compared to 2025, Conservation Service hydrologists wrote in an update on Monday.
The Great Salt Lake also peaked early, with its southern arm reaching just above 4,192 feet elevation this spring. It's back down to 4,191.7 feet elevation, back into the "serious adverse effects" range outlined in the state's management plan.
Approximately 95% of the state remains in either severe or extreme drought, while the rest is still in moderate drought.
"As we shift gears into summer, we hope for more rain and mild temperatures, with conservation of water remaining critically important," federal hydrologists wrote.
The agency's update isn't much of a surprise.
The National Weather Service's Colorado Basin River Forecast Center projected record-low to near record-low snowpack runoffs across the state, including Lake Powell at the Utah-Arizona border. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox also signed an emergency declaration last month over Utah's drought situation, which opened the door for emergency resources.
Those options are still growing. The U.S. Small Business Administration announced on Monday that it is now offering low-interest federal disaster loans to small businesses and private nonprofit organizations in central and northern Utah affected by drought since April 14.
Those impacted by the drought can receive up to $2 million with interest rates as low as 4% for small businesses and 3.625% for private nonprofits with terms of up to 30 years.
It doesn't apply to most agricultural producers, farmers or ranchers, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a natural disaster designation in April for most of Utah because of the drought.
While Utah could benefit from a potential active monsoon pattern this summer, Cox also called on residents to conserve water when he issued his declaration.
"This is a record-breaking challenge, but Utahns are record-breaking," he said at the time. "We can't control the weather, but we can control the tap."
