WSP04710

• File Number: 8056
• Description: Drought Preparedness
• State: CO
• Basin: Statewide
• Date: 6/1/1997
• Author: Donald Wilhite
• Title: Improving Drought Management in the West
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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Introduction

Water is certainly one of the defining environmental issues in the West today,
In a region marked by increasing and shifting population, increasing
urbanization, changing trends and patterns of water use, changes in social
behavior, and growing environmental awareness and concern, water is and
will continue to be a primary source of conflict and controversy, It is
imperative that we address these conflicts in a timely and systematic manner
as they evolve and before they reach crisis proportions,

Drought, a normal part of the climate for virtually all regions of the United
States, is of particular concern in the West, where an interruption of the
region's already limited water supplies for extended periods oftime can
produce devastating impacts, Historical records indicate that drought occurs
somewhere in the West almost every year; however, multiyear droughts are of
greatest concern to water planners, natural resource managers, and
policymakers, The severe multiyear droughts that plagued the region during
the 1930s and 1950s are now a distant memory for most. A recurrence of
these multiyear droughts today would result in substantially greater and
more varied impacts because of the rapid expansion and urbanization of the
region's population during the past several decades and the associated
increased pressure on water and other natural resources, even though there
has been a significant increase in water storage facilities and the application
of water-conserving technologies,

The severe drought of 1976 to 1977 in California, the Pacific Northwest, and
other portions of the region demonstrated the continuing vulnerability of the
region, This vulnerability became even more apparent during the period from
1987 to 1992, when some parts of the West experienced six or seven
consecutive years of drought. Drought conditions returned to large portions of
the region in 1994 (mainly California, the Pacific Northwest, and the Great
Basin States) and again in 1996 (mainly the Southwest and Southern Great
Plains States). The 1996 drought caused significant impacts in agriculture
and forestry and resulted in depleted reservoirs, increased groundwater
pumping, interruptions of public water supplies, and reduced recreational
opportunities and tourism revenues. Environmental and social impacts were
significant, particularly the tremendous increase in forest and range fires, soil
erosion, and effects on fish and wildlife populations.

The Western Water Policy Review Advisory Commission (Commission) has
been charged to conduct a "comprehensive review of Federal activities in the
19 Western States which directly or indirectly affect the allocation and use of
water resources, both surface and subsurface," Given that drought is a