Click the link to read the article on the KUTV website (Samantha Hoffman & Liv Kelleher). Here’s an excerpt:
October 2, 2025
After a dismal snowpack, sustained drought conditions, and a relatively weak monsoon season, southern Utah is preparing for the possibility of a water shortage. A newly proposed conservation plan outlines what the county will require municipalities to do should reservoirs run low. Washington County is experiencing its second driest year in over 130 years, according to the Washington County Water Conservancy District. 2025 was just .2 inches of rainfall above the driest year on record in 1956.
Zachary Renstrom, the general manager of WCWCD, said they put this plan together proactively in case drought or other emergencies threaten reservoir levels. The water shortage contingency plan, released Wednesday, would require each city to decrease its water use by a set percentage. Local leaders would individually decide how to accomplish this reduction. If municipalities fail to reach that reduction rate, they could face punitive pricing, ranging from a 300% to 500% increase from the standard.
“We are just preparing for a hotter, drier environment to make sure that we always have safe drinking water,” Renstrom said.
The plan is currently being reviewed by leaders within the county’s eight municipalities for approval. It would be implemented only in the case of a severe water shortage in the county…The Washington County Water Conservancy District will present the contingency plan in a public meeting on Oct. 28.