{"id":3947,"date":"2026-07-23T14:40:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T14:40:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=3947"},"modified":"2026-07-23T14:40:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T14:40:22","slug":"salt-lake-city-wants-to-limit-nonresidential-water-use-to-200000-gallons-daily","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=3947","title":{"rendered":"Salt Lake City wants to limit nonresidential water use to 200,000 gallons daily"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

SALT LAKE CITY \u2014 Utah\u2019s capital city approved an emergency measure earlier this year to crack down on the amount of water new nonresidential developments use daily.<\/p>\n

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The measure complicated the federal government\u2019s desire to build an immigrant detention center on the city\u2019s west side at the time, but the city could strengthen those restrictions as its leaders look to permanently include the measure in code.<\/p>\n

Salt Lake City is considering a new ordinance that would limit new nonresidential properties to 200,000 gallons per day, mirroring the emergency order issued in March. Uses tied to agriculture would be exempt, as would water consumed by schools, government-owned or operated facilities that primarily provide social services, places of worship and hospitals.<\/p>\n

Since there is no definition of \u201csocial services\u201d within the city\u2019s zoning code, it\u2019s relying on the dictionary definition, which states that it is any program that offers assistance with basic needs, such as food, housing, safety, job training or medical needs, including behavioral health, said Nick Norris, the city\u2019s planning director.<\/p>\n

Most industries can operate within that 200,000-gallon frame, including food processing plants or hospitals, Laura Briefer, director of the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities, explained to city leaders. Oil refining was one of the rare outliers during a study conducted a few years ago.<\/p>\n

If most industries were already keeping water use under 200,000 acres per day, some city leaders pushed for potentially reducing the number below 200,000 gallons.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have got to get our heads and our hands around the water crisis, and start to manage things more responsibly. It\u2019s literally a human survival issue, so … I would be happier if we went even stricter,\u201d said Salt Lake City Councilwoman Victoria Petro.<\/p>\n

A growing drought<\/h2>\n

Whatever the city decides, it would replace the emergency order that Salt Lake City approved in March, as it is slated to expire on Sept. 20. The City Council approved the order as it became abundantly clear that the city was in for a rough drought.<\/p>\n

Utah\u2019s record-low snowpack created water challenges in the city and across the state. Salt Lake City returned to the second stage of its water shortage plan a week before the order was approved, when it was clear that this year\u2019s spring runoff would peak at or near record lows. That was ultimately the case for many Utah waterways this spring.<\/p>\n

Hot and dry conditions have only worsened drought conditions since then.<\/p>\n

Salt Lake City received 0.23 inches of rain from a storm on Tuesday, doubling its rain total this meteorological summer, which began on June 1. Yet, entering Wednesday, Salt Lake City\u2019s precipitation since Jan. 1 was 4.61 inches below normal; its water year total, dating back to Oct. 1, was 2.02 inches below normal, thanks to a record-rainy October.<\/p>\n

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At the same time, it\u2019s been extremely hot lately. Temperatures reached as high as 109 degrees earlier this month, setting a new highest temperature ever recorded since the National Weather Service began tracking the city\u2019s weather in 1874. Salt Lake City also experienced its second-hottest first half since at least 1948, per National Centers for Environmental Information data.<\/p>\n

These have drastically worsened drought conditions. A little more than two-thirds of Salt Lake County is now in extreme drought, including nearly all of the Salt Lake Valley, while the rest is in severe drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The county was split between \u201cabnormally dry\u201d and moderate drought in late March.<\/p>\n

Salt Lake City leaders were also trying to stop the Immigration and Customs Enforcement from converting an 833,000-square-foot warehouse into an immigration detention center with the capacity for at least 7,500 detainees at the time the emergency order was approved. Such a facility would likely use 1 million to 2 million gallons of water every day, said Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall.<\/p>\n

Thus, the facility would likely run into issues with the order.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs mayor, a primary responsibility I have is to ensure residents have access to clean water, reliable utilities and safe infrastructure,\u201d Mendenhall said at the time. \u201cPut simply, a potential high-occupancy facility interferes with those needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tightening the code?<\/h2>\n

Although the facility has apparently stalled amid reports that the federal government is now trying to offload the property, threats tied to the worsening drought loomed over Tuesday\u2019s discussion about a permanent code.<\/p>\n

Multiple city councilors agreed with Petro that the permanent code could be stricter, which may include reducing exemptions. City planners were also tasked with clarifying social services after concerns that data centers could find loopholes in that exemption.<\/p>\n

The City Council is planning to hold a public hearing on the measure on Aug. 18, before a potential vote later in August to beat the Sept. 20 deadline.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this council feels very strongly about the use of water,\u201d said City Council Chairman Alejandro Puy, adding that he\u2019d also like to see ways to encourage more efficiency from existing uses. \u201cWe want … to find out what tools we have available.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Utah’s capital city is seeking to permanently approve an emergency measure it adopted earlier this year to crack down on the amount of water new nonresidential developments use daily.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3946,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-utah"],"yoast_head":"\nSalt Lake City wants to limit nonresidential water use to 200,000 gallons daily - American Movers Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=3947\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Salt Lake City wants to limit nonresidential water use to 200,000 gallons daily - 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