Modernizing the NWS Drought Information Statement

NOAA National Weather Service is developing a modernized Drought Information Statement, a product issued by NWS Weather Forecast Offices that synthesizes local drought conditions, impacts and outlook. This product draws on NWS and partner-provided drought indicators and tools, including the U.S. Drought Monitor and the NWS Climate Prediction Center’s U.S. Monthly and Seasonal Drought Outlooks. Drought Information Statements (DGTs) deliver localized messaging to key partners, such as state climate offices, agriculture and water resources managers, and the media.

This presentation will document the process and goals of modernizing the Drought Information Statement. The accessibility of Drought Information Statements was greatly improved in 2021, when NWS partnered with the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) to develop a centralized, national webpage at drought.gov. In the following year, NWS led an effort to gather the drought messaging needs of NWS field office staff and state- and regional-scale NWS partners. Extensive regional engagement through the Western States Drought Workshop and focus groups ensured that the resulting drought messaging recommendations reflected the unique nature of drought events, and drought messaging needs, from across the country. In response, NWS began developing a standardized DGT template that reduces the burden for forecasters, incorporates graphics, and enables collaboration amongst neighboring offices. In 2023, approximately 20 Weather Forecast Offices successfully tested the new template for their local drought messaging. In the fall of 2023, NWS will experimentally implement the modernized DGT, and will then work toward full, operational implementation based on user feedback about the DGT template and format.