Drought
-
How much are the losses from the California drought? Economists have various estimates depending on how the losses are tallied. The Fiscal Times estimates that the direct losses from fallowed land that is not in production are around $1.8 billion. But they also point out that if the estimated number of acres of land not…
-
The latest Drought Monitor, issued this morning, shows an area of severe drought has developed in east-central Georgia in Screven, Jenkins, and Bulloch Counties. This area is an extension of the severe drought which has been present in the Carolinas for the last few weeks. The drought expansion is due to the continuation of warm…
-
USA Today published an article yesterday looking at the “flash” drought that is currently occurring in the southern US. If you’ve never heard of the term “flash drought”, then you should know this is a term climatologists use for a drought which comes on very quickly and shows almost immediate impacts to crops and livestock.…
-
Shane Curry, the author of the Appling County Crop E News, had an interesting article this week about the unfilled ears of corn they are seeing in some locations as they harvest their fields. It discusses the problems caused by high temperatures and low humidity associated with dry conditions that affected the corn plants this…
-
The State Climate Office of North Carolina has a blog on a variety of topics related to climate in the Southeast. Today’s entry describes some research that their students are doing on the measurement of drought. One of the new products under development is a Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) which will include the impacts…
-
The latest Drought Monitor was released this morning and shows a general increase in dry conditions across the region. Drought increased from 18 to 23 percent of the region, while abnormally dry conditions (which include the drought areas) increased from 43 to 53 percent. The small area of extreme drought in south central Georgia was…
-
The latest Drought Monitor was released this morning and shows that the extreme drought in southern Florida decreased in area due to recent rain. However, North Carolina developed an area of severe drought and is undergoing water restrictions in some places. Abnormally dry conditions also expanded to cover most of South Carolina. You can read…