Update on Drought Conditions in the High Plains Region - May 19, 2015

Very wet conditions and below normal temperatures halted crop progress in North Dakota, but helped to eliminate drought conditions in the area. Some parts of the state received upwards of four inches of rain. Moderate Drought (D1) was erased entirely from the state, and there was also an almost 50 percent reduction in Abnormal Dryness (D0).

In South Dakota, weeklong rainfall was welcomed by producers as the precipitation continued to improve soil conditions. Spring wheat emerged is around 77 percent, in part due to the recent conditions, which is well ahead of the 59 percent average. Much of the western part of the state saw the eradication of D0. The central part of South Dakota saw drought improvement from D1 to D0, and there was also a slight reduction in Severe Drought (D2).

Cool temperatures and wet conditions in Nebraska has impeded further planting. However, these conditions are greatly helping soil conditions. They also have greatly affected drought conditions in Nebraska. D1 was cut by more than half for the central parts of the state, while the rest of the state saw no change in drought conditions.

Kansas received the same benefits as the aforementioned states. Although, due to their previous drought conditions, they saw significant degradations in drought conditions. Last week almost 80 percent of the state reported drought conditions. This number has been reduced to only 60 percent this week. The state is also no longer experiencing any Extreme Drought (D3) conditions. Kansas also experienced a decrease by half in D2 drought conditions. The central counties in Kansas saw a huge decrease in D1 conditions as well.

Colorado also experienced great amounts of precipitation, especially in the Rockies. This greatly improved water-supply in many river basins, boosted soil moisture,  and increased snowpack in higher elevations. Thus the United States Drought Monitor (USDM) decided to include many improvements in the drought depiction for Colorado. Less than seven percent of the state is in D2 conditions. Much of the southeastern part of the state saw a reduction in D1 conditions. The eastern parts of the state, due to the previously mentioned conditions, experienced good conditions of potato and small grain planting.

Over the next week cool and wet conditions will prosper, hopefully allowing for more drought reductions in the High Plains.

To learn more about the U.S. Drought Monitor, please see: http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu

To see the U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook, please see the Climate Prediction Center
here:http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/sdo_summary.html

To see the areas of agriculture affected by the drought, please see the USDA link: http://www.usda.gov/oce/weather/Drought/AgInDrought.pdf

To see the impacts of the drought, please see the Drought Impact Reporter here: http://droughtreporter.unl.edu/
Check out the table below for the drought conditions over the past 2 months for the High Plains Region.

To view statistics of the High Plains Region and each state check out the Regional Statistics here:
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/MapsAndData/DataTables.aspx

Drought Condition (Percent Area): High Plains Region