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 | Grain and pasture growth is stunted |
| D1 | Topsoil is dry; grain crop yields decline |
| Pasture and water supplies decline; cattle industry is under stress |
| D2 | Planting begins early; irrigation use increases |
| Hay is short; cattle sales are early |
| Fire season is extended; fire season is early; grass fires are common |
| Water quality for agriculture operations is low; stock ponds are low |
| D3 | Row crop loss is significant |
| Producers haul water for cattle and provide supplemental feeding; cattle sales increase |
| Burn bans begin |
| Deer and pheasant populations are low |
| River flow in major rivers is low; small surface water bodies are dry |
| D4 | Row crop loss is significant; producers are selling livestock herds, market prices fall |
| Epizootic hemorrhagic disease spreads; wildlife populations decline; recreational fishing and hunting are affected |
| Extremely low flow and river debris impair navigation of major rivers; commercial barge traffic slows; water use restrictions are implemented |
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.