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Highest level of U.S. drought since 2012

The latest U.S. Drought Monitor shows more than half of the United States in drought, the highest since 2012. USDA Midwest Climate Hub Director Dennis Todey says the biggest impact of the drought is on food production in the western United States. “The ability to irrigate those areas,” says Todey. “What’s happening now in the Corn Belt is not huge from an ag perspective, other than having dry soils going into next year and harvesting too dry of grain. There’s also fires. There are also problems in the Plains seeding winter wheat.” Drought improved in Missouri in the last week, but dryness intensified in other areas of the Corn Belt. Todey says it will take several rains to bust the drought. “Illinois to the east is dry. Once you get to parts of Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri and west, there’s a whole lot of concern. Our chances for improvement in those areas could be less, even though we don’t necessarily freeze up in those areas. The outlook is not as good for precipitation throughout the winter, so we have concern.” Graphic credit: the National Drought Mitigation Center