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 | Corn quality declines; less water is available for irrigation |
| Hiking trails are noticeably dry with soil erosion |
| D1 | Pasture and crop growth is stunted; farmers are not allowed to use reservoir water for irrigation |
| Concerns about fire danger increase |
| More bugs observed than normal |
| Water levels decline; voluntary water restrictions are issued; reservoir levels are depleted in high elevations |
| D2 | Pasture conditions are very dry/poor; cattle health is poor; protea, coffee bean, sugar cane crops struggle |
| Fire danger is high |
| Reservoir levels are low; springs are dried up; mandatory water restrictions are implemented |
| D3 | Producers cull cattle, buy supplements and haul water for livestock |
| Fires spread rapidly; outdoor burn bans are implemented |
| Trees are dry and dropping leaves; feral donkeys move into populated areas |
| Sugar cane producer lays off many employees |
| Water production is reduced |
| D4 | Cattle die; cattle conception rates are reduced |
| Specialty crops, orchards are dying |
| Hunting areas and hiking trails may be closed due to increased fire danger |
| Tree beetle populations decline |
| Surface water is severely impacted |
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.