Ogden
Ogden, UT water profile — supply sources, drought status, wastewater reuse, and the key water issues facing the city.
farmington city water system
surface water (rivers/reservoirs) · local government · PWSID UTAH06004
Below EPA's 15 ppb lead action level at last testing.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) · 2026 Q1
Ogden is a small but growing city and the 8th-largest in Utah, home to roughly 85,444 residents. Ogden's drinking water comes largely from the same regional sources that serve Utah: Colorado River, Great Salt Lake basin, and snowpack.
As elsewhere in Utah, the central challenge is colorado river. One of the highest per-capita users in the country and home to the shrinking Great Salt Lake; St. George is building an advanced purification demonstration facility as the Lake Powell Pipeline stalls.
Utah reuses an estimated 13% of its treated wastewater and maintains developing reuse programs; Ogden tracks severe to extreme drought conditions on the U.S. Drought Monitor scale.
Explore the Utah profile for statewide context, or dig into the water issues shaping Ogden below.
Davis County water quality
Source: EPA SDWIS · 2026 Q1
At a glance
- Population ~85,444 (8th-largest in Utah)
- Primary sources: Colorado River, Great Salt Lake basin, and snowpack
- Drought: severe to extreme conditions
- State reuse rate: ~13% of wastewater
Statewide drought history
% of Utah in severe+ drought (Extreme (D3) now).
Source: U.S. Drought Monitor
Common questions
Is tap water safe in Ogden?
Ogden's largest water system, FARMINGTON CITY WATER SYSTEM, serves about 27,860 people. EPA records show 0 health-based violation(s) since 2016 and a most-recent 90th-percentile lead level of 3 ppb (EPA action level is 15 ppb). Always check your own provider's annual Consumer Confidence Report.
Where does Ogden get its water?
FARMINGTON CITY WATER SYSTEM draws primarily from surface water (rivers/reservoirs), part of Utah's supply from Colorado River, Great Salt Lake basin, snowpack.
Related water issues
Colorado River
The river that supplies 40 million people has lost roughly a fifth of its flow since 2000, forcing a renegotiation of how seven states share the water.
ExploreDrought
Much of the American West is in a multi-decade dry period that researchers describe as the most severe in over a millennium, reshaping how communities plan for water.
ExplorePotable Reuse
Advanced purification turns treated wastewater into water that meets or exceeds drinking-water standards — increasingly essential in water-stressed regions.
ExploreGroundwater Depletion
Aquifers from the Central Valley to the Ogallala are being pumped faster than they recharge, causing land subsidence and threatening long-term supply.
Explore