Drought and a 1964 water right put Central Utah Project deliveries in focus

The Central Utah Project carries Colorado River Basin water over the Wasatch Mountains to the Great Basin, where about 90% of Utahns live, and its supply could be reduced if Utah has to cut its Colorado River use, the Salt Lake Tribune reported in a story republished by KSL. The report is part of a series by KSL, KUER and the Tribune on Utah's transbasin diversions. ^[1]

The Upper Colorado River Commission reports that all transbasin diversions together moved about 165,000 acre-feet to the Great Basin in 2024, roughly 15% of Utah's total Colorado River consumption that year, according to the Tribune. The project's manager, Jared Hansen, described it as a supplemental source serving 1.5 million to 2 million people, depending on the year. Its system includes more than 100 miles of tunnels, pipelines and diversions and relies largely on gravity. ^[1]

Drought has cut into the supply. In a typical year about 100,000 acre-feet flows into Strawberry Reservoir through the project, the Tribune reported, but just over 37,000 acre-feet arrived this year after a warm winter and a historically small snowpack. Hansen, who has worked on the project for 36 years, called it the worst year of his career. Banked water keeps the reservoir about three-quarters full. ^[1]

The project's water right dates to 1964, making it relatively junior. If Upper Basin states must curtail use because of litigation or a Colorado River Compact dispute process, the Central Utah Water Conservancy District may have to let water flow toward Lake Powell, the Tribune reported. Amy Haas, director of the Colorado River Authority of Utah, said at a conference last year that a curtailment would be "hugely disruptive, if not catastrophic," for the Wasatch Front. District area manager Troy Ovard said the district would reduce deliveries to the Wasatch Front if reservoirs could not hold up through a prolonged drought. ^[1]

This summer the district finished a four-mile pipeline in southern Utah County that now delivers Colorado River water to Santaquin and Salem for the first time. Planned projects include enclosing the High Line Canal in Utah County and extending a pipeline to Nephi. ^[1]