‘Extreme’ drought expands in northwest Iowa

Published by editor on Wed, 10/12/2022 - 1:17pm

The area of extreme drought in northwest Iowa doubled in size in the U.S. Drought Monitor’s recent report. (Graphic courtesy of U.S. Drought Monitor)

By:

Jared Strong

Iowa Capital Dispatch

Unseasonably hot and dry weather last week in northwest Iowa caused a pocket of “extreme” drought to more than double in size, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

That drought designation is the second to worst, next to “exceptional.” For many weeks, that pocket of drought had been confined mainly to areas near Sioux City near the state’s western border.

In the Drought Monitor’s Thursday report, the area of extreme drought expanded east several counties to Humboldt and Kossuth in north-central Iowa.

The Drought Monitor makes its weekly assessments based on a variety of weather data, soil-moisture indicators, the movement of surface water and local observations.

Last week, statewide temperatures averaged 6 degrees above normal, and much of northwest Iowa had less than two-tenths of an inch of rain, according to a recent report by State Climatologist Justin Glisan.

Two weeks ago, a large patch of extreme drought developed in southeast Iowa, but heavy rainfall helped alleviate some of that dryness. Much of the area has been upgraded to “severe” or “moderate” drought.

The Drought monitor’s classifications predict the following effects:

— Moderate drought can cause some damage to crops and pastures, and streams run low.
— Severe drought is likely to cause crop losses and water shortages.
— Extreme drought causes major crop loses and widespread water shortages.
— Exceptional drought can cause water emergencies and widespread crop losses.

There is a tiny sliver of Woodbury County near the Nebraska border where the drought is exceptional, according to the Thursday report.

As a whole, the state is drier than it’s been since October 2021. About 79% of the state is abnormally dry or in a drought.

A wide area of northeast Iowa — which has had sufficient rains for months — is now considered abnormally dry.

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