All Entries Tagged With: "Drought"
Polis Sends Letter to Ag Secretary Requesting Emergency Relief
To: U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue From: Jared Polis, Governor, State of Colorado Date: September 28, 2020 RE: Emergency Relief Needed for Colorado Producers Dear Honorable Secretary Perdue, Farmers and ranchers in Colorado are suffering deep financial losses due to persistent drought conditions, extreme weather events, and compounding disasters. Our state’s producers report […]
NWS-Moderate to Exceptional Drought Status for Southern Colorado
SYNOPSIS: August was mainly hot and dry across Colorado, with the state as whole experiencing its warmest and fifth driest August on record (126 years). With that said, drought deepened across the state with over 98 percent of Colorado experiencing drought conditions by the end of the month. However, an unseasonably strong and cold […]
State Ag Department Seeks Public Feedback on 2020 Drought Experiences
September 10, 2020 (DENVER) – Following an exceptionally dry spring and summer, drought conditions now cover 99% of the state of Colorado, exacerbated by record-breaking temperatures and an existing moisture deficit continuing from last fall. On June 22, Governor Polis activated the Colorado Drought Mitigation and Response Plan under the chairmanship of directors from […]
Commissioners Send Drought Letter of Concern to Ag Secretary
July 28, 2020 Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue U.S. Department of Agriculture 1400 Independence Ave., S.W. Washington, DC 20250 (via USPS & email: agsec@usda.gov) Dear Honorable Secretary Perdue: The past three years have been devastating for Colorado farmers, due to extreme weather events; 2018 (drought), 2019 (freeze) and 2020 (drought) and, according to credentialed agronomists, […]
CROP PROGRESS AND CONDITION – WEEK ENDING AUGUST 2, 2020
AGRICULTURAL SUMMARY: Much needed rain greened pastures, but also damaged alfalfa in the southern areas of the state, according to the Mountain Region Field Office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA. Statewide, weather reports indicate that over the past week isolated areas received more than one inch of rain with most of […]
Letter to the Editor-Needed USDA Safety Nets in SE Colorado
US Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue US Senator Michael Bennet US Senator Cory Gardner RE: Drought Disaster in SE Colorado & FAILURE of USDA Safety Nets-Emergency Measures Needed Dear Secretary Perdue, Senator Bennet, & Senator Gardner, The past three years have been devastating for farmers in S/E Colorado, due to extreme weather events, that greatly […]
2020 Will be a Dry Year
With the end of June marking the half year on the calendar, precipitation reports for southeast Colorado are stark. On June 22, Governor Jared Polis requested activation of Colorado’s Drought Task Force and Phase 2 of the State Drought Mitigation and Response Plan as drought conditions deepen, reaching more than 81% of the state, […]
Governor Polis Activates Drought Plan and Task Force
Severe Drought Expands Across Southern, Eastern Regions June 23, 2020 (Denver, CO) – Governor Jared Polis requested activation of Colorado’s Drought Task Force and Phase 2 of the State Drought Mitigation and Response Plan this week as drought conditions deepen, reaching more than 81% of the state, with severe and extreme drought conditions in 33% […]
CWCB May 2020 Drought Outlook
As predicted in last month’s report, snowpack has rapidly declined. Soils are exceptionally dry throughout the southern half of the state and much of the eastern plains. Thus, despite average mountain snowpack, drought conditions have quickly intensified – particularly in the San Luis Valley, Arkansas Valley, and parts of the western slope. Outlooks show […]
Drought Returning to Southern Colorado Areas
Moderate to Severe Drought Conditions Return to Portions of South Central and Southeast Colorado… SYNOPSIS… A wet and cool Spring of 2019, combined with the previous wet Winter of 2018 and 2019 allowed for the US Drought Monitor to declare all of Colorado drought free on May 21st of 2019, a […]
2019 Climate Year in Review across Southern Colorado
January of 2019 started out cold and unsettled, as a passing weather system ushered in some of the coldest air of the season across the area on New Year’s Day. The rest of January can be characterized by periodic weather disturbances moving through persistent moderate west to northwest flow aloft across the Rockies. This […]
2019-2020 Water Year Begins in Colorado
The State of Colorado began its 2019-2020 study of our drought situation this past Tuesday, October 1st noting that nearly 70% of Colorado is in the lowest level of drought classification, D-0 or ‘abnormally dry’. This classification registers for 596,000 residents in the state or 12% and covers 42.4% of Colorado. The only […]
CWCB August 2019 Drought Update
August has been warmer than average across the majority of the state and each basin, except for the Republican basin, has experienced below average precipitation. The North American monsoon season has been disappointing in Colorado and other parts of the Southwestern U.S. The monsoon season sometimes results in beneficial moisture for south central Colorado […]
Improvement in Drought Conditions across South Central and Southeast Colorado
DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT – Pueblo – Mar 21, 2019 SYNOPSIS Abundant and much needed precipitation across Colorado`s High Country over the past few months has allowed the US Drought Monitor to indicate marked improvement in the drought that has plagued much of Colorado over the past year. Abundant precipitation through the first half of March, […]
Colorado River Basin States Move Forward with Contingency Plan to Address Looming Crisis
DENVER – The seven Colorado River Basin States of Colorado, Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming signed a letter to Congress today requesting legislation to implement a negotiated contingency plan that responds to the historic dry conditions and the effects of climate change on the Colorado River. “Water is the lifeblood of […]
