Summer Drought Monitor For Boulder County: June 20

BOULDER COUNTY, CO — Western Colorado remains under extreme drought conditions; however, the recent rainfall left Boulder County and eastern Colorado drought free — at least for now, according to data from the National Drought Mitigation Center.

Counties such as Moffat, Rio Blanco, Garfield and Delta are classified under 'D4 - exceptional drought' in the center's intensity map. Boulder County is classified as 'none:'

1. None
2. D0: Abnormally Dry
3. D1: Moderate Drought
4. D2: Severe Drought
5. D3: Extreme Drought
6. D4: Exceptional Drought

Early summer forecasts for Colorado predict hot and dry weather, and above-normal wildfire potential; however, Colorado's firefighting resources expanded after the 2020 wildfire season — $54 million has been allocated for response and prevention efforts in our state.

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In the rest of the country, the worst areas of drought are in Southwest states, where parts of California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah are experiencing extreme or exceptionally severe drought conditions, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center.

Meanwhile, in the Southeast, dryness and drought have been steadily spreading in Virginia, the Carolinas and Florida.

So what exactly is drought?

Drought is defined as a lack of precipitation such as rain, snow or sleet over a period that typically results in a water shortage. While drought usually stems from an area's specific weather pattern, it can also be triggered by human activity such as water use and management.

Behind hurricanes, drought is the second-most-costly form of natural disaster in the United States, exacting an average toll of $9.6 billion in damage and loss per event, according to statistics from the National Centers for Environmental Information.

Usually, some level of drought has some part of the country in its grip.

During the historic dry spell of 2012 — the nation's most extensive since the 1930s — as much as two-thirds of the country was affected by drought at its peak.

U.S. droughts can sometimes last longer than a season. From 2012 to 2016, scant rainfall and record-breaking heat in California created what is estimated to have been the state's worst drought in 1,200 years, according to the National Resources Defense Council.

Fortunately for everyone, water is a renewable resource that moves in a cycle with neither a beginning nor an end. Typically, the United States receives enough precipitation during an average year to cover the states in a depth of about 30 inches.

But when it does rain, what happens to water when it reaches the ground?

About 70 percent of the annual precipitation returns to the atmosphere by evaporation from land and water surfaces and by vapor from vegetation. The remaining 30 percent eventually reaches a stream, lake or ocean due to runoff during and immediately after rain, as well as soaking into the ground.

If you've ever wondered where a raindrop ends up when it falls in Colorado, check out this interactive map developed by data analyst Sam Learner that traces the path of a raindrop depending on where it falls.