Oklahoma Climate Webinar: April 16, 2024

Welcome and Introductions

Speaker: Joel Lisonbee | Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)/CU Boulder; NOAA's National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS)

Oklahoma Drought and Climate Trends 

Speaker: Gary McManus | Oklahoma State Climatologist 

• Pockets of drought continue across the state.
• Drought began in Oklahoma in August 2021.
• The drought included three smaller episodes, each of which started as a flash drought. 
• Long-range forecasts show an increased likelihood of La Niña, which usually means increased drought across the state.

Drought Impacts and the Effects of Disaster Relief Insurance on Oklahoma’s Rural Communities 

Speaker: Katie Welch | PhD Candidate, Oklahoma State University

• Total drought impacts on Tillman, Jackson, and Harmon Counties, Oklahoma, include an average of:
  • $166 million per year in lost economic output
  • 1,110 lost jobs per year
  • $69 million value lost from the local economies per year.
• The mitigating effects on drought impacts include:
  • Global market forces (e.g., 2012 bumper wheat crop, 2013 and 2014 record high cattle prices)
  • Insurance indemnity payments.

Questions & Answers

Moderator: Andres Cibils | USDA Southern Plains Climate Hub