What is a reservoir?

A reservoir is a humanmade lake that is created when a dam is built on a river. River water backs up behind the dam creating a reservoir. Reservoirs are built to store freshwater and function as a direct source of water supply as well as to balance supply across periods of high flow input (snowmelt runoff for example) and periods of time associated with low or no water flow conditions.

Source: UGS

Click here for more information regarding reservoir storage conditions in Utah.


Select reservoir site locations on the map to explore reservoir storage data within the Central Wasatch Mountain region.