BOARD00047 ‎(2)‎

• Board Meeting Date: 9/20/2006
• Description: IWM & D Section - Western Governors Association - The National Integrated Drought Information System - Creating a Drought Early Warning System for the 21st Century
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

~isioCLand Goals

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The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) Vision

A dynamic and accessible drought information system that provides users with
the ability to determine the potential impacts of drought and the associated risks
they bring. and the decision support tools needed to better prepare for and mitigate
the elfects of drought.

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NIDIS Goals

NIDIS is intended to accomplish the following goals:

. Develop the leadership and partnerships to ensure successful implementation of
an integrated national drought monitoring and forecasting system;
. Foster, and support, a research environmenllhat focuses on impact mitigation
and improved predictive capabilities;
. Create a drought "early warning system" capable of providing accurate, timely
and integrated information on drought conditions at the relevant spatial scale to
facilitate proactive decisions aimed at minimizing the economic, social and
ecosystem losses associated with drought;
. Provide interactive delivery systems, including an Internet portal. of easily com~
prehensible and stJndardized products (databases, forecasts, GIS-based products,
maps, etc.); and
. Provide a framework for interacling with and educating those atTected by drought
on how and why droughts occur, and how they impact human and natural systems.

Inte..grating.ObselYations...anclData_Systems_

Current Observations
and Data Systems

Drought planning and
mitigation will be based
upon the gathering of high
quality infonnation related
to a variety of physical,
environmental and human
conditions. The gathering
and integration of data
includes making more eni-
cient use of existing data
as well as "filling in the
holes" in local, state,
regional and federal networks. Characterization of drought requires a combination
of two types of information:

Key Variables for Monitoring Drought

, climate data

, soil moisture

, stream flow
, ground water
, reservoir and lake levels
, short, medium and long range forecasts
, vegetation health/stress and fire danger

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]. Observations of past and current physical states of the environment and their
context within the relevant historical record.
2. Documented impacts on human and natural systems that are a consequence of
the physical conditions.