A red sun low over Slim Lake through wildfire haze, its reflection a column of orange on the water

Reservoirs in Utah

81 of 304 measured Utah lakes (27%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 78 carry a High or Significant hazard rating.

Reading the Utah reservoir landscape

81 reservoirs in Utah appear in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. That's a meaningful share — reservoir lakes carry their own ecology and access patterns distinct from natural lakes, including managed water levels, drawdowns timed to the dam's purpose, and shoreline mix dominated by structures built post-impoundment.

Utah's reservoirs serve a mix of purposes — flood control, water supply, hydroelectric power generation, navigation, and recreation often co-exist on the same impoundment, with one designated as the primary and others as secondary. The operating rules (pool levels, release schedules, drawdown timing) follow the primary purpose, which shapes everything from shoreline access through fish-population dynamics through year-round recreational use patterns.

The USACE National Inventory of Dams (NID) catalogs every dam in the United States above a size threshold — typically 25 feet in height or 50 acre-feet in maximum storage, plus all dams classified as high-hazard regardless of size. The reservoir records below pull NID fields (year built, hazard class, maximum storage, surface area at normal pool, dam length, primary purpose) and pair them with water-quality data where the impoundment also appears in EPA's lake-monitoring inventory.

Why these Utah reservoirs were built

Irrigation

Water Supply

Recreation

Fish and Wildlife Pond

Flood Risk Reduction

Hydroelectric

Total reservoirs

53,567

Total surface acres

2,605,354

Normal storage (ac-ft)

High or Significant hazard

All 81 Utah reservoirs (by surface area)

Reservoir	County	Surface area	Year built	Purpose	Hazard
Strawberry Lake	Wasatch	17,163 ac	1974	Irrigation	High
Willard South Marina Lake	Box Elder	9,950 ac	1964	Irrigation	High
Willard Bay Reservoir	Box Elder	9,950 ac	1964	Irrigation	High
Cutler Reservoir	Cache	5,460 ac	1927	Irrigation	High
Starvation Reservoir	Duchesne	3,310 ac	1970	Irrigation	High
Scofield Reservoir	Carbon	2,810 ac	1946	Irrigation	High
Steinaker Reservoir	Uintah	850 ac	1961	Irrigation	High
Moon Lake	Duchesne	773 ac	1938	Irrigation	High
East Canyon Reservoir	Morgan	684 ac	1966	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Red Fleet Reservoir	Uintah	521 ac	1980	Fish and Wildlife Pond	High
Hyrum Reservoir	Cache	480 ac	1935	Irrigation	High
Bottle Hallow Reservoir	Uintah	412 ac	1970	Irrigation	High
Lost Creek Reservoir Emap	Morgan	365 ac	1966	Irrigation	High
Upper Stillwater Reservoir	Duchesne	329 ac	1987	Irrigation	High
Newton Reservoir	Cache	297 ac	1946	Irrigation	High
Causey Reservoir	Weber	136 ac	1966	Irrigation	High
Lower Gooseberry Reservoir	Sanpete	52 ac	1937	Recreation	Significant
Third Dam Lake	Cache	14 ac	1924	Hydroelectric	Low
Posey Lake	Garfield	11 ac	—	Recreation	Low
Jordanelle Reservoir	Wasatch	—	1993	Water Supply	High
Lower Bowns Reservoir	Garfield	—	1960	Irrigation	Significant
Jordenelle Lake	Wasatch	—	1993	Water Supply	High
Wide Hollow Reservoir	Garfield	—	1954	Irrigation	High
Recapture Reservoir	San Juan	—	1984	Irrigation	High
Little Dell Reservoir	Salt Lake	—	1993	Water Supply	High
Tibble Fork Reservoir	Utah	—	1966	Irrigation	High
Calder Reservoir	Uintah	—	1989	Irrigation	Significant
Mona Reservoir	Juab	—	1895	Irrigation	High
Silver Lake Flat Reservoir	Utah	—	1971	Water Supply	High
Big East Lake	Utah	—	1898	Irrigation	High
Settlement Canyon Reservoir	Tooele	—	1966	Irrigation	High
Grantsville Reservoir	Tooele	—	1984	Irrigation	High
Lake Mary	Salt Lake	—	1915	Water Supply	High
Johnson Reservoir	Sevier	—	1910	Irrigation	High
Upper Enterprise Reservoir	Washington	—	1912	Irrigation	High
Millsite Reservoir	Emery	—	1971	Irrigation	High
Electric Lake	Emery	—	1974	Water Supply	High
Gunlock Reservoir	Washington	—	1970	Irrigation	High
Mill Meadow Reservoir	Wayne	—	1954	Irrigation	High
Forsyth Reservoir	Sevier	—	1922	Irrigation	High
Newcastle Reservoir	Iron	—	1956	Irrigation	High
Dmad Reservoir N of Cut	Millard	—	1959	Irrigation	High
Piute Reservoir	Piute	—	1938	Irrigation	High
Redmond Lake	Sevier	—	1875	Irrigation	Significant
Gunnison Bend Reservoir	Millard	—	1895	Irrigation	High
Otter Creek Reservoir	Piute	—	1897	Irrigation	High
Navajo Lake	Kane	—	1933	—	Low
Koosharem Reservoir	Sevier	—	1919	Irrigation	High
Minersville Reservoir	Beaver	—	1914	Irrigation	High
Porcupine Reservoir	Cache	—	1962	Irrigation	High
Little Creek Reservoir	Rich	—	1929	Irrigation	Significant
Whitney Reservoir	Summit	—	1966	Irrigation	High
Woodruff Creek Reservoir	Rich	—	1970	Irrigation	High
Baker Dam Reservoir	Washington	—	1950	Irrigation	High
Smith And Morehouse Reservoir	Summit	—	1987	Irrigation	High
Paradise Park Reservoir	Uintah	—	1924	Irrigation	High
Oaks Park Reservoir	Uintah	—	1938	Irrigation	High
Big Sand Wash Reservoir	Duchesne	—	2006	Irrigation	High
Brough Reservoir	Uintah	—	1975	Irrigation	High
Red Creek Reservoir	Duchesne	—	1960	Irrigation	High
Long Park Reservoir	Daggett	—	1980	Irrigation	High
East Park Reservoir	Uintah	—	1919	Irrigation	High
Hoop Lake	Summit	—	1939	Irrigation	Significant
Browne Lake	Daggett	—	1957	Recreation	Significant
Joes Valley Reservoir	Emery	—	1966	Irrigation	High
Miller Flat Reservoir	Emery	—	1949	Irrigation	High
Quail Creek Reservoir	Washington	—	1984	Irrigation	High
Ferron Reservoir	Sanpete	—	1974	Water Supply	Significant
Sheep Creek Lake	Daggett	—	1958	Recreation	Significant
Cleveland Lake	Emery	—	1909	Irrigation	High
Kolob Reservoir	Washington	—	1956	Irrigation	High
Three Creeks Reservoir	Beaver	—	1949	Irrigation	High
Palisade Lake	Sanpete	—	1899	Irrigation	High
Gunnison Reservoir	Sanpete	—	1889	Irrigation	High
Tropic Reservoir	Garfield	—	1936	Irrigation	High
Matt Warner Reservoir E	Uintah	—	1938	Irrigation	Significant
Nine Mile Reservoir	Sanpete	—	1900	Irrigation	High
Anderson Meadow Reservoir	Beaver	—	1956	Recreation	Significant
Birch Creek Reservoir	Rich	—	1951	Irrigation	High
Beaver Meadow Reservoir	Summit	—	1949	Irrigation	Significant
Manning Creek Lake	Piute	—	1970	Irrigation	Significant

Frequently Asked Questions

How many reservoirs are in Utah?

81 of 304 measured Utah lakes (27%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 78 are rated High or Significant hazard, meaning failure would put downstream lives or property at substantial risk. The oldest matched dam dates to 1875.

What's the largest reservoir in Utah?

The largest matched reservoir in Utah is Strawberry Lake in Wasatch County at 17,163 acres of normal surface area, impounded by the Soldier Creek Dam (completed 1974).

What's the difference between a reservoir and a natural lake?

A reservoir is a body of water impounded by a man-made dam — typically built for flood control, hydroelectric power, water supply, irrigation, or recreation. A natural lake formed without human intervention, usually from glacial scouring, volcanic activity, or river meandering. Reservoirs typically have shoreline that fluctuates with seasonal water level management, while natural lakes have more stable shorelines. The USACE National Inventory of Dams classifies every regulated dam in the United States, which is how we identify which LakeQuality lakes are actually reservoirs.

What does the hazard class mean?

USACE assigns each dam a hazard potential classification based on what would happen downstream if the dam failed — NOT how likely the dam is to fail. "Low" hazard means dam failure would cause no probable loss of life and only low economic loss. "Significant" means probable loss of life is unlikely but appreciable economic damage would occur. "High" means probable loss of life and significant economic damage. The classification is about consequence, not condition. Many High-hazard dams are perfectly safe; they're rated High because populated areas have grown downstream over time.

Where does this reservoir data come from?

Every reservoir record on this page is matched to the USACE National Inventory of Dams (NID), the federal database of all dams ≥25 ft tall or impounding ≥50 acre-feet, plus any dam that poses a Significant or High hazard regardless of size. The NID is published by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and updated annually. Surface area, storage capacity, dam height, and hazard classification come directly from NID records.

Where to stay near Utah reservoirs

Compare cabins, lodges, and vacation rentals near the largest reservoirs in Utah — live availability and prices for boating, fishing, and lake trips.

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More on reservoirs and water quality

Are Reservoirs Cleaner Than Natural Lakes?

Dam-built reservoirs and natural lakes compared side by side on the same nutrient and algae measurements — the gap, the reasons behind it, and the exceptions.

Do Deeper Lakes Have Better Water Quality?

Surveyed maximum depth against nutrient and algae readings: the pattern, the shallow lakes that still read clean, and why land use beats bathymetry.

Lake Water Quality Explained: What the Readings Mean

How nutrient and algae readings are read against EPA ecoregion condition classes, what each class means in the water, and why a clean reading is not a clearance.

Why Lakes Turn Green: Phosphorus and Nutrient Pollution

How phosphorus and nutrient runoff drive algae growth and turn lakes green, where the nutrients come from, and what it means for a lake’s readings.

Data source

Reservoir data from the USACE National Inventory of Dams (NID), the federal database of all regulated dams. Dam attributes (height, year completed, storage capacity, hazard class) are matched to LakeQuality lakes by proximity and dam-name similarity. Some lakes may be reservoirs that aren't matched if the dam record uses a name substantially different from our lake name.