The Great Water Debate

The Great Water Debate

Growing up in Saint George I vividly remember my grandma and many other older residents having old milk jugs lined around the rain gutters of the house to collect rain water every time it rained. My grandma knew how precious every drop of rain water was long before water shortages were a common thing in Utah.

Water, Water, Nowhere

Here at Steve Regan Company we serve many people from both residential and agricultural backgrounds. With water shortages and drought constantly in the forefront the debate over where all our water is used is constantly coming up. We’ve tried to compile the most accurate statistics we can find so everybody can see the information and there won’t be animosity from either side. Agriculture and residents are both important to Utah’s economy and it’s vital that we can all live together sustainably. 

Who Uses What

It is hard to see where all the water used in the state ends up. Below are some statistics about water usage in Utah that hopefully clears up some of the confusion.

Utah Water Statistics Numbers Source
Urban acreage in Utah: 597,760 Acres (Roughly 1.1% of total land) Gardner Institute
Household Water Usage: 242 gallons/day per person | 88,330 gal/year per person KSL
Number of people in Utah 3.5 million people use 847,000,000 gal per day (2,599 acre ft) & 309,155,000,000 gal per year (948,762 acre ft) Census
Household Yard Water Usage 67% of water use (207,133,850,000 gal per year) Washington Terrace
Acres of Farmland in Utah 10,500,000 Acres (Roughly 19.9% of total land)  USDA NASS
Acres of irrigated land 1,100,000 - 1,200,000 acres USU Extension
Water used by Agriculture 75% of state's total water usage Water Resource Plan
Water use by common crops About 2 - 6 acre ft per acre KSL
Water Use Per Household About 0.45 acre ft per year KSL

Water For All

So, do farms use more water than residents in Utah? It’s complicated. Irrigated farmland does often use more water per acre, especially for water intensive crops like Alfalfa. However, if there is enough density per acre (about 13 homes per acre) then housing would use more water. Farms also have benefits for bees and the climate that go far beyond just the crops produced. And while they can use more water, it’s not as much more as some of these statistics on their own would have you believe. Because there is much more farmland in Utah than urban land (about 17.5 times as much), of course agriculture will use much more of the state's total water. This doesn't mean farms shouldn't do everything they can to conserve water though. We just want people to know that farm water use isn't always the boogie man it's made out to be. So next time you drive by a farm, we hope you won’t get upset about the water they are using. And remember the farmer feeds us all.

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