2024 National Integrated Drought Information System Annual Report
The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) is pleased to share our 2024 Annual Report to provide insight into the many accomplishments of the program over the previous year and the opportunities that lie ahead.
The 2006 NIDIS Public Law prescribed a comprehensive, interagency approach for drought monitoring, forecasting, and early warning planning and preparedness to help states and local communities cope with the impacts of drought. The law called on NIDIS to develop and provide a national drought early warning system (DEWS).
In 2024, NIDIS took a number of key steps towards this goal. First, NIDIS added Michigan to the Midwest Drought Early Warning System, completing that regional DEWS. Next, NIDIS held a special drought webinar followed by a regional drought status update to address the record-setting drought in West Virginia, Ohio, and parts of the surrounding mid-Atlantic states. The webinar and drought update made connections with decision-makers in West Virginia and other parts of the Mid-Atlantic responding to drought conditions not often seen in the region.
Another key step that NIDIS took in 2024 was continuing to deliver drought early warning information to communities along the lower Mississippi River Basin impacted by multiple years of below-normal water levels. Besides impacts to shipping along the river, the Lower River Mississippi River Basin saw record-setting wildfires, agricultural production declines, and a threat to parts of the region’s drinking water supplies from saltwater intrusion, especially in Louisiana. NIDIS covered the 2022 and 2023 drought conditions with special updates and webinars, as well as funding research on the drivers of the Louisiana water crisis.
For the third year in a row, water levels on the Mississippi River dropped below normal in 2024. NIDIS, along with National Weather Service (NWS) partners, regularly updated Federal agency leadership on conditions, outlooks, and impacts on the river. NIDIS also began work on a Mississippi River Basin Drought and Water Dashboard in consultation with partners along the river corridor, a resource that will deliver timely and relevant information on drought conditions, outlooks, and impacts across the entire watershed.
NIDIS's work in 2023 and 2024 sets the stage for a big year in 2025. The completion of this fully operational national drought early warning system is fundamental to creating a more drought resilient nation. Through continued investment, transformational improvements in drought monitoring, forecasting, planning, and research will help reduce drought’s catastrophic economic, wildfire, health, and environmental impacts across the country.
