New population figures added to the U.S. Drought Monitor website show that for this week, more than 73 million people in the United States are in a drought-affected area, with more than half of the total – 37 million – in California. Population figures are a new, permanent addition to the U.S. Drought Monitor site, in response to popular demand.
There are a few ways to find this information, which is available for the entire country and for individual states:
1) The map drill down: When you click on the main USDM map at both the regional and state levels, you will get the “Population Affected by Drought” value. This will be right under the statistics table.
2) In the “Maps and Data” section on the “Weekly Comparison” page, under the two maps, there is now a fourth tab, “Population Data,” after the “Statistics,” “Time Series,” and “Narrative” tabs.
3) Also under “Maps and Data,” the “Data Tables” option now has a “Population Statistics” button to choose.
The methodology for calculating population affected is under the “About USDM” tab.
-- Brian Fuchs, NDMC