Current Impacts
To see or report current drought impacts, please visit the Drought Impacts Toolkit, where you can find impacts from media in the Drought Impact Reporter, and from citizen scientists and other volunteer observers under Condition Monitoring Observations.
Historic Impacts
No two states experience the same set of impacts during a drought. We developed tables of impacts reported during past droughts in each state for each level of drought on the U.S. Drought Monitor. These state-specific possible impacts complement the general, national possible impacts column of the U.S. Drought Monitor Classification Scheme.
| Category | Historically observed impacts |
|---|
| D0 | Crop growth is stunted; planting is delayed |
| Fire danger is elevated; spring fire season starts early |
| Lawns brown early; gardens begin to wilt |
| Surface water levels decline |
| D1 | Irrigation use increases; hay and grain yields are lower than normal |
| Honey production declines |
| Wildfires and ground fires increase |
| Trees and landscaping are stressed; fish are stressed |
| Voluntary water conservation is requested; reservoir and lake levels are below normal capacity |
| D2 | Specialty crops are impacted in both yield and fruit size |
| Producers begin feeding cattle; hay prices are high |
| Warnings are issued on outdoor burns; air quality is poor |
| Golf courses conserve water |
| Trees are brittle and susceptible to insects |
| Fish kills occur; wildlife move to farms for food |
| Water quality is poor; groundwater is declining; irrigation ponds are dry; outdoor water restrictions are implemented |
| D3 | Crop loss is widespread; Christmas tree farms are stressed; dairy farmers are struggling financially |
| Well drillers and bulk water haulers see increased business |
| Water recreation and hunting are modified; wildlife disease outbreak is observed |
| Extremely reduced flow to ceased flow of water is observed; river temperatures are warm; wells are running dry; people are digging more and deeper wells |
How well does this table characterize drought impacts in your state? Think an impact is missing? Please fill out this survey to help improve the table.