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I I I I I I I I I I I on{:s Stale-Level Drought Planning: Curren! Status The basic goal of State drought plans is to improve the effectiveness of State response efforts by enhancing monitoring and early warning, impact assessment, and preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation programs. These plans are also directed at improving coordination within agencies of State Government and between State and Federal Government, The growth in the number of States with drought plans suggests an increased concern about the potential impact of extended water shortages and an attempt to address those concerns through planning. In the United States, States are clearly the policy innovators for drought management (Wilhite, 1991a), in contrast to Australia, where the Federal Government has provided most of the leadership, in concert with the States, for the development of a national drought policy (White et aI., 1993). Drought plans are the foundation for improved drought management in the United States, The Federal Government should provide incentives for all drought-prone States to develop a plan that seeks to reduce the risks associated with extended periods of water shortage. I I I I I State drought plans take many forms. Some concentrate largely on impacts in one principal sector (e.g., agriculture, municipal water supply), while others attempt to address a full range of impacts within the State. One ofthe first States to develop a drought plan was Colorado, This plan was developed in 1981 at the request ofthe governor and is quite comprehensive. Since development, the plan has undergone revisions to improve the State's capacity to deal with extended periods of water shortage. The Colorado Drought Response Plan is administered by the Office ofE~ergency Management under the authority of the Colorado Natural Hazards Mitigation Council (Truby and Boulas, 1994). The development of the Colorado drought plan was prompted by the State's susceptibility to drought and the desire to effectively and systematically deal with short- and long-term drought problems. Like its neighboring States, Colorado suffered through years of drought during both the 1930s and 1950s. In 1976 to 1977, a severe drought, mainly during the winter months, had an immense impact on the State, particularly the State's skiing industry, causing severe economic impacts Statewide. When drought conditions again developed during the spring and summer in 1981, the governor initiated the development of a comprehensive State drought plan. The plan was updated in 1986 and again in 1990 (Colorado Office of Emergency Management, 1990). Maintaining an effective drought plan is important, as a rapidly growing population continues to increase demands on Colorado's water and other natural resources, 17