Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Regional Drought Update Date
August 5, 2025
Site Section
Drought Status Update

Drought Status Update for California-Nevada


DEWS Regions:
States:
Update Status:

NIDIS and its partners will issue future drought status updates as conditions evolve.

California-Nevada Faces Continued Risk of Drought, Heat, and Wildfire Impacts During Remaining Dry Season

Key Points

  • Since the start of the water year, the area of California and Nevada in drought increased by ~28% and intensified. New areas of Abnormally Dry (D0) or worse conditions crept northward in the region, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
  • Risk is elevated for extreme heat over the next week and beyond, while outlooks suggest limited monsoon precipitation in coming weeks.
  • The National Interagency Fire Center predicts above-normal fire potential in northern California and much of northern and eastern Nevada in August and September due to dry fuel conditions and warm temperatures. The Gifford Fire recently ignited on August 1 in Central California under hot, dry, and windy conditions.
  • Dry, warm conditions persist in the southern two-thirds of California and much of Nevada. Drought preparedness is key as we head into the upcoming wet season (October–May).
  • NIDIS and partners will continue to provide the latest information on conditions, outlooks, and impacts through the next water year. 

This update is based on data available as of Monday, August 4, 2025 at 7:00 a.m. PT. We acknowledge that conditions are evolving.

Current Conditions
U.S. Drought Monitor Conditions for California-Nevada

Drought & Dryness Categories
% Area
38.37
19.09
20.41
7.80
0.06
47.36
Drought Degradation
Drought Improvement
Drought Degradation
Drought Improvement

Main Stats
~47%
of California-Nevada is in drought
~28%
more of California-Nevada is in drought (D1–D4) since the start of the water year
<50%
of normal water year to date precipitation for nearly a third of California and Nevada

Current Drought Conditions for California/Nevada

  • A year ago (early August 2024), less than 5% of California-Nevada was in drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. By the start of the 2025 Water Year (October 1, 2024), around 20% of the region (southern Nevada and southeastern California) was in drought, in part due to a lack of summer monsoon activity last year. Drought in the region persisted and intensified over fall and winter, and by the beginning of April 2025, drought covered 44% of the region, with Extreme to Exceptional Drought (D3-D4) in southern Nevada and southeastern California.
  • Since April, drought and dryness expanded into the northern part of the region, while drought improved but persisted in southern California and Nevada.
  • From April–July, temperatures along the coast (Figure 2) were normal to slightly below normal, with above-normal temperatures increasing to as much as 3-6° Fahrenheit (F) near the California/Nevada border.
  • Over the last two months, evaporative demand (the “thirst of the atmosphere”) has been high in central California and northwestern Nevada (Figure 3). Fuels are also a concern. For example, critically dry fuel conditions are present in northwestern and eastern Nevada.
  • California year-to-date wildland fires are slightly above the 5-year normal according to Cal-Fire. Both the Mount Irish and Hot Canyon fires exhibited extreme fire behavior.
  • While extended dryness would typically result in increased potential for large fires, precipitation and cooler temperatures in recent weeks mitigated fire risk. But conditions have dried out and warmed up again. The Gifford Fire recently ignited on August 1 in Central California under hot, dry, and windy conditions.
  • As of mid-July, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 2025 secretarial drought designations encompass much of southern California through southern and eastern Nevada.
  • Major California water supply reservoirs remain near or above their historical averages. Reservoirs in all regions of Nevada are below capacity compared to July 2024, with the largest changes in reservoirs in the Carson and Lower Humboldt regions. Both Lake Powell and Lake Mead are near 30% of storage capacity.

Below-Normal Water Year Precipitation in Central and Southern California-Nevada

The figure shows a map of the percentile of climatological precipitation for October 1, 2024–July 31, 2025 (water year to date, or WYTD), compared to historical conditions (Water Years 1982-2025). The northwestern corner of the region is above the 50th percentile  while lowest values (<10th percentile) is prevalent across western/central to central to southern Nevada.
Figure 1. Water year to date (October 1, 2024–July 31, 2025) precipitation, compared to historical conditions (Water Years 1982-2025). Precipitation totals are shown in percentiles. Brown hues indicate below-normal precipitation, while blue-green hues show above-normal precipitation. Provided by C. Castellano, CW3E

Drought Expands in Much of Nevada After a Dry, Warm April-July

Drought Expands in Much of Nevada After a Dry, Warm April-July
Departure from normal temperatures (left) and percent of normal monthly precipitation (right) for April-July 2025, compared to historical conditions from 1991-2020. In the temperature map (left), yellow to red hues indicate above-normal temperatures. In the precipitation map (right), brown hues indicate below-normal precipitation, while blue-green hues show above-normal precipitation. Provided by C. Castellano, CW3E.

High Evaporative Demand Over the Last 2 Months Indicates Higher Fire Risk

A map of EDDI values over California and Nevada over the last two-month period ending on July 25, 2025. EDDI values are above the 80th percentile throughout much of California and Nevada. The highest EDDI values are in central California and in and around Churchill and Pershing Counties in Nevada.
Figure 3. The Evaporative Drought Demand Index (EDDI) is a relative measure that indicates the atmospheric conditions that dry the land surface. This map shows evaporative demand over the past 2 months (through July 25, 2025). Red colors indicate high evaporative demand and more drying, while blue colors indicate lower evaporative demand and less drying. View different time periods of EDDI values for California-Nevada. Source: NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. 

Outlooks and Potential Impacts for California-Nevada

  • For most of the region, the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center’s seasonal outlooks (August–October) show slightly greater chances of warmer-than-normal temperatures, with equal chances of above-, near-, or below-normal precipitation. August outlooks (Figures 4, 5) show similar trends, but with equal chances of above-, below-, or near-normal temperatures along the California coast.
  • The National Weather Service warned about increased risk of extreme heat for much of California-Nevada in early August, except over coastal California.
  • Next week and the following week, the precipitation outlook leans near normal or slightly below normal for the region, including southern Nevada and southeast California, suggesting limited monsoonal precipitation. Most of the rest of the California-Nevada region is typically dry this time of year.
  • Existing drought conditions are forecast to persist over the next one to three months. Drought impacts, such as to vegetation, agriculture, public health, and fire potential, are expected to continue in central and southern parts of California and much of Nevada as we wrap up the warm season.
  • The National Interagency Fire Center predicts above-normal fire potential in northern California and much of northern and eastern Nevada in August (Figure 6) and September due to dry fuel conditions and warm temperatures.
  • The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is currently neutral and likely to stay that way this fall. As we transition from fall to winter, forecasts favor remaining neutral or La Niña conditions. It remains to be seen what this means for the 2025-2026 wet season and drought relief or intensification.
  • NIDIS and partners will continue to provide the latest information on conditions, outlooks, and impacts through the next water year. 

August Outlook Favors Warmer Temperatures (Except Along the Coast)

The monthly outlook for August favors above-normal temperatures for California and Nevada except at the coast.
Figure 4. This map shows the probability (percent chance) of above-normal (red hues), near-normal (gray), or below-normal (blue hues) temperatures for August 2025.  White areas indicate equal chances of above-, below-, or near-normal conditions. Source: NOAA National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center. Map from Drought.gov.

August Precipitation Outlook Favors Equal Chances of Above-, Below-, or Near-Normal Precipitation

August outlooks favor equal chances of above, normal, and below normal precipitation for California and Nevada.
Figure 5. This map shows the probability (percent chance) of above-normal (green hues), near-normal (gray hues), or below-normal (brown hues) temperatures for August 2025. White areas indicate equal chances of above-, below-, or near-normal conditions. Source: NOAA National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center. Map from Drought.gov.

Greater Risk of Significant Wildland Fire Potential Widespread Through August–September 

Significant wildland fire potential outlooks show above-normal potential in August in northern, central, and parts of southern California, as well as northern and eastern Nevada.
Figure 6. This map shows areas forecast to have significant wildland fire potential for August 2025. Above-normal fire potential is shown in red. Valid August 1, 2025. Source: National Interagency Fire Center

Resources

 

Prepared By

Amanda Sheffield
California-Nevada DEWS Regional Drought Information Coordinator
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado Boulder
NOAA’s National Integrated Drought Information System

Julie Kalansky
Principal Investigator 
California-Nevada Adaptation Program (a NOAA CAP/RISA team)

Special Thanks

This Drought Status Update is issued in partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the California-Nevada Adaptation Program (a NOAA CAP team), and the Western Regional Climate Center at the Desert Research Institute to communicate a potential area of concern for drought expansion and/or development within the California-Nevada DEWS region based on recent conditions and the upcoming forecast. NIDIS and its partners will issue future Drought Status Updates as conditions evolve.