Quarterly Climate Impacts and Outlook for the Western Region for March – May 2017. Dated June 2017.   

Between 2016 and 2018, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Southern Plains Climate Hub led a project to assess the impacts of the recent historic 2016 and 2018 wildfires on the Southern Plains.

This Climate.gov feature highlights that the Ogallala Aquifer (which underlies parts of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming) is drying. This will likely be one of the most pressing issues facing water availability in the Southern Plains regions in the coming decades.

Quarterly Climate Impacts and Outlook for the Western Region for December 2016 – February 2017. Dated March 2017.   

HIghlights from December 2016, January and February 2017 for the Western states include:

The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), in conjunction with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC), and the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), hosted a workshop at the USGS Flagstaff Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona, on April 8-9, 2010, to begin the process of developing a drought early warning system for the Four Corners region of the U.S. Southwest.

This report provides information to the Navajo Nation that has been deemed important for the future development of a climate change adaptation plan and is intended to be used by decision makers on the Nation.

Report on a workshop that took place April 8-9, 2010 in Flagstaff, Arizona between officials from the Hualapai, Zuni, Hopi, Navajo, Tohono O’odham and Southern Ute Tribes, together with NIDIS, NOAA, Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), Northern Arizona University, University of Arizona, Western Water Assessment, Desert Research Institute, Indigenous Waters Network, Flagstaff Science Center, USGS, National Drought Mitigation Center, Bureau of Reclamation and the Western Regional Climate Center.

NIDIS news story about helping communities develop drought impacts reporting methods. The article spends time talking about issues faced on tribal lands, specifically on Hopi lands.

Suggest EDIT:

Story about issues on tribal lands, specifically Hopi lands, on how communities can develop drought impacts reporting methods. Existing resource management and technical staff can use local observations to plan for mitigation tailored to a region’s specific needs. 

From Dry Times, the NIDIS newsletter.