Launched in 2012, the Coastal Carolinas Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) is a collaborative federal, state, and local interagency effort to improve early warning capacity and resilience to drought with an emphasis on the unique coastal ecosystems of North and South Carolina. Drought in coastal areas can contribute to changing water quality conditions, particularly increased salinity levels and fluctuations, and changes in the availability and timing of freshwater to support animals, plants, and habitats. 

Monitoring burning conditions in eastern North Carolina’s organic soils can be challenging. Existing measures of near-surface dryness, such as drought indices and National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS) parameters, have often been considered poor indicators of fire risk in organic soils, which have complex compositions, can burn and smolder several feet underground, and are often found in regions with subtle but meaningful terrain differences.

In response to the potential for drought in the Pacific Northwest, NIDIS and its partners launched the Pacific Northwest Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) in February 2016. This document describes the evolution of the DEWS, the kickoff meeting and findings, and potential future activities.

On March 21, 2016, President Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum directing Federal agencies to build national capabilities for long-term drought resilience.

This report documents the Midwest Drought Early Warning System Kickoff Meeting, held February 9-11, 2016 in St. Louis, MO, to formally launch the Midwest DEWS. The multi-day event brought together federal, state, local, private industry and academic partners and other stakeholders for an in-depth discussion on drought and high-precipitation events in the Midwest, with attention to water, climate, land resources and emergency management. Discussions centered on improving the capacity to meet the early warning information needs of decision makers in the Midwest.

Two-page summary of the Climate Assessment Report: Causes for Hydrologic Extremes  in the Upper Missouri River Basin. The report demonstrates a strong physical connection between the increased frequency of high annual runoff events in the UMRB and the increase in precipitation falling over the upper basin.

The purpose of this handbook is to cover some of the most commonly used drought indicators/indices that are being applied across drought-prone regions, with the goal of advancing monitoring, early warning and information delivery systems in support of risk-based drought management policies and preparedness plans.

For water providers and others in the Rocky Mountain West who depend on the pulse of runoff from the melting snowpack from April through July, snowpack monitoring is drought monitoring. A well below average snowpack as measured by snow-water equivalent (SWE) is a harbinger of not only low water supply but also other drought impacts, such as increased fire risk and below-normal summer soil moisture.

Two-pager describes regional workshops held in March 2016 in Brookings, SD and Casper, WY to enhance and build partnerships between the regional climate and agricultural services communities.

Describes NOAA activities through May 2016 in support of the California Water Action Plan (CWAP).