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Drought Early Warning Activities

Page Summary

Each regional drought early warning system (DEWS) focuses on improving early warning capacity for and resilience to drought in that region, including examining the role of extreme weather events and climate variability in drought.

Regional DEWS Coordination

NIDIS has developed regional drought early warning systems (DEWS) throughout the United States, where local networks of researchers, resource managers, policymakers, the private sector, academics, and other stakeholders share information and actions to help their communities cope with drought.

A DEWS coordinates this network of key regional partners so that decision makers and citizens can systematically approach drought monitoring and forecasting integration when planning and preparing for drought. Regional DEWS encourage innovation by integrating new, locally relevant drought information, and supporting the introduction and testing of technologies that detect and communicate drought risks and warnings.

Regional DEWS activities focus on five key areas for drought early warning (DEWS components): observation and monitoring, prediction and forecasting, planning and preparedness, communication and outreach, and interdisciplinary research and applications.

Circles representing each of the 5 key components of a drought early warning system

Drought Early Warning Activities

The table below shows ongoing activities related to drought early warning across the United States. Each activity falls into one or more of the five key areas of drought early warning systems (DEWS components): observation and monitoring, planning and preparedness, prediction and forecasting, communication and outreach, and interdisciplinary research and applications.

DEWS Components Legend
Observation & Monitoring
 
Planning & Preparedness
 
Prediction & Forecasting
 
Communication & Outreach
 
Research & Applications

Select filters to browse DEWS Activities below

Description

Arizona Local Drought Impact Groups are county-level groups that coordinate drought public awareness, provide impact assessment information to local and state leaders, and implement and…

Scope
State
Key Partners
Arizona Department of Water Resources
Project Timeline
Ongoing
DEWS Components
Description

On the Oregon Coast, water providers generally serve small populations (less than 5,000 people). These providers rely on surface water supply from coastal drainages that are rain-dominated,…

Scope
Local
Key Partners
Oregon State University, Oregon Water Resources Department, Mid-Coast Water Planning Partnership
Project Timeline
Ongoing
DEWS Components
Description

This series of bi-monthly drought and climate outlook webinars is designed to provide stakeholders and other interested parties in California and Nevada with timely information on current drought…

Scope
Region
Key Partners
NOAA, NIDIS, California-Nevada Climate Applications Program (CNAP, a NOAA RISA Team), Western Regional Climate Center
Project Timeline
Ongoing
DEWS Components
Description

This project aimed to build a predictive understanding of drought and to quantify the risk of droughts with certain characteristics in the lower and upper Mississippi and Ohio River basins. This…

Scope
Region
Key Partners
NOAA Earth Systems Research Laboratory
Project Timeline
Oct
2019
Sep
2022
DEWS Components
Description

The Great Plains and California consist of the first and second largest economies in the U.S., but both regions are prone to extreme droughts. Yet, it is…

Scope
Region
Key Partners
NOAA, University of California, Los Angeles
Project Timeline
Sep
2020
Aug
2023
DEWS Components