Drought Information Statement for Western CO & Eastern UT Valid May 1, 2025 Issued By: WFO Grand Junction, CO Contact Information: This product will be updated if drought conditions change significantly. Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements. Please visit https://www.weather.gov/gjt/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates/ for regional drought status updates. Expansion of D3 - Across portions of Mesa, Delta and Montrose counties in western Colorado U.S. Drought Monitor U.S. Drought Monitor for the Intermountain West Drought intensity and Extent: D3 (Extreme Drought): Introduced over portions of Mesa, Delta and Montrose counties D2 (Severe Drought): Expansion nosing up the Colorado River Basin D1 (Moderate Drought): Filling in lower elevations across the Gunnison and Roaring Fork River Basins D0: (Abnormally Dry): Introduced drought conditions over high terrain in Gunnison, Eagle and southern Routt counties Precipitation Below normal precipitation was observed across much of eastern Utah and western Colorado, through the month of April Temperature Overall, April was an abnormally warm month across eastern UT and western CO with the more notable anomalies across northeast UT and northwest CO Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts Snow Water Equivalent - as percent of Median In general, peak in SWE was observed earlier than normal across the Upper CO River Basin Warm and drier than normal April resulted in accelerated snowmelt across the CWA Current SWE conditions are below normal across all of eastern UT and western CO river basins Streamflow mirrors seasonal snowpack with southeast UT and southwest CO rivers running bellow to well below normal Water Supply Spring runoff & water supply forecasts declined throughout April due to the early onset/acceleration of snowmelt Peak flow forecasts are below average across the region, with the lowest percentiles centered over the Upper & Lower San Juan River basins Fire Hazard Impacts Significant wildfire potential outlooks begins to show above normal fire potential expanding into southwest Colorado and southeast Utah by June 2025 Seven Day Precipitation Forecast Several systems will return the chance for widespread precipitation over the next 7 days Current forecast favors the Front Range and areas to the southeast for higher precipitation totals, however, positive anomalies are still present across majority of the CWA Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage Up to 40% probability of above-normal precipitation in May Above normal temperatures are probable across northern zones, with a decrease probability of above-normal temperatures moving south (over the Four Corners area) Drought Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage Anticipate drought conditions to persist through the month of May and into summer Summary of Impacts Hydrologic Impacts Gov. Spencer Cox (Utah) issued an Executive Order declaring a state of emergency due to drought conditions combined with low streamflow forecasts and increased water demands with warmer temperatures for San Juan, Grand and Uintah counties Agricultural Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Fire Hazard Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Other Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Mitigation Actions Please refer to your municipality and/or water provider for mitigation information.