Utah is Finally Drought Free!.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4 Utah) – It has been several years since we have been able to say this — there are no droughts to report in Utah.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration made the declaration.
"We’ve had an exceptionally wet winter season which would be the December 1 through the end of February, with some places getting three or even 400 percent of normal precip {precipitation} over the north," said Michael Conger, Senior Forecaster, National Weather Service Salt Lake.
A map tweeted out from NOAA shows the drought conditions across the United States, with Utah coming in 100 percent drought free.
#DroughtMonitor pic.twitter.com/XFdhIYARxM — NOAA (@NOAA) March 16, 2017 "We have been coming out of an exceptionally dry stretch from the early 2010s and we finally got a good winter and got knocked out of the drought," explained Conger.
Many spots in the Western part of the U.S. are also either experiencing drought free conditions, or conditions that are at least better than years before.
Although Utah is in the clear right now, Conger encourages everyone to still conserve their water usage.
"It’s always a good idea not to waste water.
I would say just because we’re out of the drought, I would say we should continue — at least our mindsets should continue."