Drought is a natural part of the Southeastern United States climate and a threat to agricultural productivity and profitability. “Forage: A Producers Guide to Drought Preparation, Management, and Recovery in the Southeastern United States” is one in a set of guides to help Southeastern United States producers of economically important agricultural commodities build resilience to, prepare for, manage, and recover from drought impacts. This guide was developed by the U.S.

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.

In March 2020, Moderate to Severe Drought (D1-D2) intensified rapidly to Exceptional Drought (D4) along the lower Rio Grande in Texas, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Over the next five years, drought severity waxed and waned across the Southern Plains, shifting location and extent but never leaving the region. Drought touched the lives of nearly every resident of the Southern Plains states (Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas).

This report, Facing Future Droughts: Lessons from the Southeast’s 2023 Fall Flash Drought, was developed to improve the monitoring, communication, and response to drought in the Southeastern United States, with a specific focus on flash drought. The 2019 flash drought exposed critical gaps in early warning and monitoring systems, sparking conversations that continued during the 2022 Southeast Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) Regional Meeting.

NOAA’s National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) was authorized by Congress in 2006 (Public Law 109–430) and reauthorized in 2014 and 2019 with an interagency mandate to coordinate and integrate drought research, building upon existing federal, tribal, state, and local partnerships in support of creating a national drought early warning information system.

Focusing on the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center’s (CPC) long-term Seasonal Drought Outlook, this William M. Lapenta NOAA student internship project aimed to address the complexities of communicating uncertainty and provide recommendations on improving communications to best support agricultural producers. This project focused on the process of communicating outlooks to the agricultural sector through the lens of agricultural intermediaries, such as agricultural extension staff and state climatologists.

Drought has occurred frequently in the Mid-Atlantic states over the past century. Major droughts occurred in the 1930s, 1940s, 1960s, and 1980s, with several lasting for more than a year. In 2024, heat and a lack of rainfall led to widespread drought across Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. For some locations, the 2024 drought was the worst the region had experienced in more than two decades.

Given the broad interest and need to better understand and plan for ecological drought in the Southeast, the U.S. Geological Survey's Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), in support of the Southeast Drought Early Warning System, convened a 2-day workshop in January 2025. This workshop brought together scientists and managers from diverse fields, to address drought and low-flow in the Southeast and its impacts to aquatic systems across the region.

Understanding the use cases and value of the U.S. Climate Reference Network (USCRN) soil moisture data is essential to inform future directions for the soil moisture network. In 2023-2024, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) conducted extensive outreach both within and external to NOAA to assess the utilization, value, and potential impacts of downsizing or discontinuing the soil moisture network.

Regional groundwater measurements in the Ogallala Aquifer show ongoing declines in aquifer water quality and quantity that are being exacerbated by warming trends and highly variable precipitation. The importance of this system, which is used for agriculture and is a main driver impacting socioeconomic activity and ecosystems in the region, cannot be overstated. Addressing regional aquifer depletion and other water-related challenges, including drought, is vital and necessary work.