In the latest state lawn watering guidelines, Summit County residents are asked to limit lawn waterings to two per week, one fewer than recommended in the rest of the state, as the region remains in a brutal drought.

Marcie McCartney, a spokesperson for the Utah Division of Water Resources, said the guidelines are based on weather patterns and how quickly water from the soils evaporates into the air.

McCartney indicated that the county’s elevation leads to cooler temperatures and soils retaining moisture longer than other places around the state.

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“Cooler weather means that the evaporation rate is slower and soil temps are lower and it allows the soil moisture to stay longer. So there’s more time that can go between waterings,” she wrote in an email to The Park Record.

She indicated that the agency would likely recommend three waterings soon, but she urged people to cut back on water use as much as possible.

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“With current drought conditions being as extreme as they are, people may want to consider cutting back watering even more. Grass (aka turf) only needs about one inch of water per month to survive hot and dry summer months,” she wrote. “… This summer people may need to wrap their heads around not having a perfectly green lawn and allowing it to go dormant (which most do anyway) during the summer.”