Pacific Northwest DEWS Drought & Climate Outlook Webinar: October 25, 2021

Webinar Introduction

Speaker: Holly Prendeville, USDA Northwest Climate Hub

Climate Recap and Current Conditions

Speaker: Joe Boomgard-Zagrodnik, Washington State University

• It finally rained, but the recent rainfall is typical for early autumn.
• Year-to-date precipitation remains extremely low across eastern Washington/Oregon and Idaho. Precipitation is the worst in southeast Washington. 
• Exceptional (D4) drought conditions persist in the same areas as the last update. 
• Abnormal dryness (D0) in Western Washington has been erased.

Seasonal Conditions and Climate Outlook

Speaker: David DeWitt, National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center

• The current drought over much of the Pacific Northwest is likely to be ameliorated this fall and winter given the large-scale climate drivers (La Niña).
• We are predicting below-normal temperatures for the Pacific Northwest this winter.
• The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) and the Climate Prediction Center are collaborating to produce state-of-the-art probabilistic drought outlooks that will be co-developed with stakeholders. 

Climate Toolbox Historical Drought Stripes Tool

Speakers: Katherine Hegewisch | University of California – Merced

• The Climate Toolbox Drought Stripes tool depicts past wet and dry conditions for a location as a time series of colors.
• The tool can be customized for a location, for a type of drought, and for short- or long-term drought timescales.
• The tool uses the same thresholds and colors as the U.S. Drought Monitor.
• The Drought Stripes tool can be used to explore the past drought intensity, duration, and frequency for a location.
• Explore the Historical Drought Stripes Tool.

Evaluating Fish Rescue as a Drought Adaptation Tool

Speaker: Jonny Armstrong, Oregon State University

• Fish rescue can increase fish abundance by functioning as a fry-to-smolt hatchery. This could be beneficial in extreme scenarios of drought or population decline.
• We lack evidence that fry-to-smolt captive rearing is safe, and it doesn’t have the well-demonstrated effects of egg-to-smolt rearing.
• Any type of fish rescue will likely prevent natural selection from favoring drought-resilient phenotypes.