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Drought Early Warning Activities

Page Summary

Each regional drought early warning system (DEWS) focuses on improving early warning capacity for and resilience to drought in that region, including examining the role of extreme weather events and climate variability in drought.

Regional DEWS Coordination

NIDIS has developed regional drought early warning systems (DEWS) throughout the United States, where local networks of researchers, resource managers, policymakers, the private sector, academics, and other stakeholders share information and actions to help their communities cope with drought.

A DEWS coordinates this network of key regional partners so that decision makers and citizens can systematically approach drought monitoring and forecasting integration when planning and preparing for drought. Regional DEWS encourage innovation by integrating new, locally relevant drought information, and supporting the introduction and testing of technologies that detect and communicate drought risks and warnings.

Regional DEWS activities focus on five key areas for drought early warning (DEWS components): observation and monitoring, prediction and forecasting, planning and preparedness, communication and outreach, and interdisciplinary research and applications.

Circles representing each of the 5 key components of a drought early warning system

Drought Early Warning Activities

The table below shows ongoing activities related to drought early warning across the United States. Each activity falls into one or more of the five key areas of drought early warning systems (DEWS components): observation and monitoring, planning and preparedness, prediction and forecasting, communication and outreach, and interdisciplinary research and applications.

DEWS Components Legend
Observation & Monitoring
 
Planning & Preparedness
 
Prediction & Forecasting
 
Communication & Outreach
 
Research & Applications

Select filters to browse DEWS Activities below

Description

Arizona Local Drought Impact Groups are county-level groups that coordinate drought public awareness, provide impact assessment information to local and state leaders, and implement and…

Scope
State
Key Partners
Arizona Department of Water Resources
Project Timeline
Ongoing
DEWS Components
Description

The purpose of this project is to provide organic soil moisture data and information to aid coastal zone fire risk monitoring and management. Current and archived data from these stations are…

Scope
State
Key Partners
North Carolina State Climate Office, Carolinas Integrated Sciences and Assessments (CISA, a NOAA RISA Team), The Nature Conservancy, NIDIS
Project Timeline
Oct
2017
Aug
2021
DEWS Components
Description

On the Oregon Coast, water providers generally serve small populations (less than 5,000 people). These providers rely on surface water supply from coastal drainages that are rain-dominated,…

Scope
Local
Key Partners
Oregon State University, Oregon Water Resources Department, Mid-Coast Water Planning Partnership
Project Timeline
Ongoing
DEWS Components
Description

The purpose of this project was to increase the dissemination of available drought-related information to end-user organizations in a way that allows them to…

Scope
Region
Key Partners
Boston University
Project Timeline
Ongoing
DEWS Components
Description

To improve access and usability of drought and water information across the Mississippi River Basin, NOAA, in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is developing a…

Scope
Region
Key Partners
NOAA, NIDIS, NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, National Weather Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Geological Survey, NOAA Regional Climate Centers, American Association of State Climatologists
Project Timeline
Jul
2024
May
2025
DEWS Components