Planning for Drought

Current Drought Planning Efforts | Developing Your Own Drought Plan

In the last few decades, interest in planning for drought has increased at all levels. In 1980, only 3 states (New York, South Dakota, and Colorado) had drought plans. Today, most states either have some type of plan or are in the process of developing a plan. The tremendous cost (economic, social, and environmental) associated with drought impacts is one of the reasons for this interest
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The actual process of planning for drought is not static. It has been evolving since the early 1980s, through trial and error. That process can be confusing, and the prospect of drought planning can be daunting. This website is designed to help people and organizations plan for drought. It is based on the 3 main components of drought planning: monitoring, impact and risk assessment, and mitigation. This section includes an overview of drought planning, a directory of U.S. drought contacts, and links to other planning resources.

Highlights

The Hydro-Illogical Cycle

10-Step Drought Planning Process

Current Drought Planning Efforts

Why Plan for Drought?

 

The Status of State Drought Plans

 

State Drought Plans

The NDMC maintains a list of links to drought plans from a number of U.S. states.

 

Tribal Drought

A discussion of the status of tribal drought planning in the United States.

 

Local Drought Plans

The NDMC maintains a list of links to a variety of municipal, association, and individual drought plans.

Developing Your Own Drought Plan

News Articles

Links to articles related to drought planning

 

Managing Water: Policies and Problems

 

The Hydro-Illogical Cycle

 

Drought Preparedness Planning: Building Institutional Capacity

This features the NDMC’s 10-step Drought Planning Process. The 10-step planning process, developed in 1991 and revised in 2000 and 2004, provides guidelines for creating a drought plan and a process to adapt the plan to any level of government or geographical setting. Reprinted from D.A. Wilhite, ed. Drought and Water Crises: Science, Technology, and Management Issues (CRC Press, 2005), pp. 93-135, by courtesy of Taylor and Francis Group, LLC. (To see the Table of Contents, click here. To order this book, click here.)

 

How to Reduce Drought Risk

The Preparedness and Mitigation working group of the Western Drought Coordination Council (WDCC), which included NDMC staff, created this guide to assessing vulnerability to drought. It is a step-by-step process for users to identify actions that can be taken to reduce potential drought-related impacts.

 

Urban Drought Guidebook (2008)

U. S. Bureau of Reclamation and the California Urban Water Conservation Council worked together on the guidebook to provide technical assistance to local water suppliers.

 

 

More Drought Planning Methodologies

 

Assessing Drought Impacts and Vulnerabilities for Long-Term Planning and Mitigation Programs

The results of a national survey of state drought planning processes in 2004 are presented in a study by University of Arizona PhD student Joe Abraham. The paper examines existing drought planning guidance and offers several recommendations for improving state planning process structures.

 

Directory of U.S. Drought Contacts

Use this list to find drought planners in other U.S. states and regions.

 

International Drought Planning Contacts

Use this list to find drought planning agencies in countries around the world.

 

Other Resources