What is a drought?
A drought is simply a long period (usually a season or more) of dry weather where less than normal or no precipitation falls. Precipitation is any form of moisture such as rain, snow, sleet, etc. Droughts are a natural and frequent occurrence in the Delaware River Basin (the basin contains 13,539 square miles and drains portions of Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania). How bad a drought is usually depends on how little precipitation falls, how long the drought lasts, and the size of the area that is affected. The next time you hear someone talk about a drought where you live, play detective and look for some of the many signs that may be telling you the lack of precipitation is taking its toll: LOW WATER IN STREAMS, RIVERS, LAKES, AND PONDS – While visiting your favorite park, you may have noticed how little water you found in the rivers, streams, lakes and ponds. Low flow in water bodies may be one sign of drought. Water levels fall when there is not enough precipitation
A drought occurs when there no rain for a long period of time. In a drought plants do not grow properly and the water supply to homes and to industry is limited. As streams and rivers dry up plants and animals die. In areas where trees have been cut down, hot winds blow away the dry topsoil. Because farm crops and animals die due to lack of water, there is less food for people to eat, and what food there costs more. If a drought lasts a long time, people may also die of starvation and the land may become desert. Image © [2007] Jupiterimages Corporation To prepare for a time of drought, people store water in dams and use the water from larger rivers to irrigate their crops. Planting trees may help stop the soil being blown away in times of drought. Wildlife is at risk too. Without rain, the plant food eaten by land animals and birds is in short supply or dies out all together. When waterways dry up wildlife has no drinking water. Fish and other animals that live in streams, rivers and d
A drought is a climate event marked by a prolonged period of decreased rainfall. Droughts are in fact part of the natural climate cycle in many regions of the world, but they can still be extremely disruptive, especially when the impact of the drought is increased by human activities. Drought conditions are of interest socially, politically, economically, and environmentally, and at any given time, several regions of the world are often experiencing dry conditions. In a simple meteorological drought, rainfall is lower than average, or lower than expected, for a period of several months. This can deepen into a hydrologic situation, in which overall water supplies are low and conflicts over water resources may emerge, in which case an agricultural drought, in which crops and livestock suffer, may also emerge. Droughts can be accompanied with major climate changes, such as an increase in average temperatures, or unusually high winds. The hot, dry weather can contribute to desertification,
A drought is defined as “a period of abnormally dry weather sufficiently prolonged for the lack of water to cause serious hydrologic imbalance in the affected area.” -Glossary of Meteorology (1959). In easier to understand terms, a drought is a period of unusually persistant dry weather that persists long enough to cause serious problems such as crop damage and/or water supply shortages. The severity of the drought depends upon the degree of moisture deficiency, the duration, and the size of the affected area.
Related Questions
- Can New York State or the Delaware River Basin Commission require New York City to release water in addition to releases prescribed in the Flexible Flow Management Program?
- What are Justice O’Connor’s recommendations from the Report of the Walkerton Commission of Inquiry on water conservation?
- What is a drought?
