Using Climate Forecasts for Drought Management

Drought hazards, and the ability to mitigate them with advance warning, offer potentially valuable applications of climate forecast products. Yet the value is often untapped, owing to the gap between climate science and societal decisions. This study bridged that gap; it determined forecast needs among water managers, translated forecasts to meet those needs, and shaped drought decision making to take advantage of forecasts. NOAA Climate Prediction Center (CPC) seasonal precipitation outlooks were converted into a forecast precipitation index (FPI) tailored for water managers in the southeastern United States. The FPI expresses forecasts as a departure from the climatological normal and is consistent with other drought indicators. Evaluations of CPC seasonal forecasts issued during 1995–2000 demonstrated positive skill for drought seasons in the Southeast. In addition, using evaluation criteria of water managers, 88% of forecasts for drought seasons would have appropriately prompted drought responses. Encouraged by these evaluations, and the understandability of the FPI, state water managers started using the forecasts in 2001 for deciding whether to pay farmers to suspend irrigation. Economic benefits of this forecast information were estimated at $100–$350 million in a state-declared drought year (2001, 2002) and $5–$30 million in the other years (2003, 2004). This study provides four main contributions: 1) an investigation of the needs and potential benefits of seasonal forecast information for water management, 2) a method for translating the CPC forecasts into a format needed by water managers, 3) the integration of forecast information into agency decision making, and 4) the economic valuation of that forecast information.