1. United States
2. Utah
3. Letter

I am writing as a deeply concerned Utah resident regarding a contradiction at the heart of your current water policy that I can no longer ignore. You have declared a statewide drought emergency. All 29 counties are in severe drought. Utah just endured its warmest winter on record with snowpack at half of normal levels. You have urged every Utahn to treat water as the precious resource it is. I take that seriously. I am wondering if you do. At the very same moment you are asking families to shorten their showers, your administration is actively supporting the Stratos Project, a 40,000-acre data center complex in Box Elder County that analysts estimate could consume between 4 billion and 16 billion gallons of water annually. You cannot ask ordinary Utahns to ration water with one hand while waving through one of the largest single water consumers in this state’s history with the other. Conservation, it seems, is for residents — not for corporations. I also cannot overlook your position as an alfalfa farmer, a crop among the most water-intensive grown in the American West, in a state where agriculture already accounts for roughly 70% of total water consumption. You have asked Utahns to look in the mirror. I would ask the same of you. Governor Cox, I urge you to halt state support for the Stratos Project pending a full, independent water and environmental impact review. Apply the same conservation standard to large commercial operations that you are demanding of Utah families. We are either in a water emergency or we are not. We cannot be in both, depending on who is asking.