A CRJ200 DECLARED AN EMER FOR LOW FUEL WHEN THEIR DEST WX FORCED A DIVERSION.

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WE DEPARTED ZZZ1 FOR ZZZ2 WITH PLANNED DISPATCH FUEL. ENRTE TO ZZZ2; WE WERE REQUESTED TO HOLD S OF THE VOR. AT THAT POINT WE INFORMED CTR THAT WE COULD HOLD FOR FIVE MINUTES. WE THEN CONTACTED DISPATCH THROUGH COMMERCIAL RADIO. WHILE WAITING FOR THE PHONE PATCH; CENTER INFORMED US THAT ZZZ2 WOULD NOT REOPEN WITHIN OUR TIME FRAME. CENTER THEN PLACED US ON A WESTERLY VECTOR WHILE WE TALKED TO DISPATCH. BASED ON DIRECT ROUTING TO ZZZ1; WE CONCURRED THAT A RETURN TO ZZZ1 WAS POSSIBLE WITH PRESENT FUEL. HOWEVER; AFTER WE ENTERED CENTER'S NEW ROUTE INTO THE FMS; WE FOUND THAT OUR LANDING FUEL WOULD BE APPROXIMATELY 1000 LBS. UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THAT LEVEL OF RISK; WE DETERMINED A NEW DEST WAS NEEDED. UNABLE TO CONTACT DISPATCH DUE TO OUR LOWER ALT; WE DIVERTED TO ZZZ. ENRTE TO ZZZ; AN EMER WAS DECLARED WHEN IT WAS BELIEVED THAT SEQUENCING FOR THE RWY MIGHT DEGRADE THE SAFETY OF FLT; AS WE WERE NOW BURNING OUR RESERVE FUEL. FACTORS THAT INCREASED OUR FUEL BURN: LOWER THAN PLANNED FLT ALT; CONTINUOUS USE OF ANTI-ICE; DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PLANNED RTE AND ACTUAL FLT PLAN DUE TO ATC; DELAYED COMMUNICATION OF NEW DEST BY OPS; ALL OF WHICH WERE NOT PLANNED INTO OUR FUEL BY OPS.CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATES THE ENTIRE PLT GROUP AT HIS ACR IS UNDER CONSIDERABLE PRESSURE TO LIMIT FUEL LOAD. HE LEFT WITH A LEGAL LOAD; BUT ONE THAT WAS NOT REALLY OPERATIONALLY SOUND. DEST ARPT HAD SIGNIFICANT WX EARLIER IN THE DAY; AND THEY WERE WORKING OFF THE TFC BACKLOG; WHICH CAUSED THE HOLDS AND ARR DELAYS.