Improving Effectiveness of State Drought Programs and Plans

Nearly all states have drought programs that include a state drought plan. Drought programs typically incorporate monitoring, response, and mitigation. Drought plans implement some of these components. However, the effectiveness of state drought programs and plans vary widely. This motivates the following questions: What makes an effective state drought plan? How does a drought plan contribute to drought program effectiveness? What factors, in addition to plans, influence drought programs? Overall, what works, what doesn’t work, and why? To investigate these questions, we analyze drought plans and drought management programs across the U.S. (including all Western Governors’ Association states), and conduct interviews with drought officials to learn from their experiences. From these results, we develop recommendations for improvements to the Washington State Drought Plan, with particular consideration to criteria and methods for assessing drought conditions (e.g., indicators, triggers, and specialized monitoring tools), drought declaration and response strategies (e.g., statewide, by region/sector), long term mitigation strategies, forecast information for drought management, and climate change adaptations.

Funded by the Washington State Department of Ecology and the National Science Foundation

Anne C. Steinemann, PI

Above: the Columbia River. Photo: Washington Dept. of Ecology.