THE BUREAU OF RECLAMATION - ADDRESSING DROUGHT IN THE WEST THROUGH SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND STORY MAPS

The Bureau of Reclamation is working with states, Tribes, agriculture, power customers, municipalities, conservation groups, and other stakeholders on projects and activities across the West to address drought conditions and impacts. Reclamation collaborates with water users on water management improvements, water reuse and recycling projects, reservoir operations, the development of science and tools, water supply planning, and more.

Severe and sustained droughts are part of life in the Western U.S., resulting in water shortages, affecting agriculture, municipalities, Tribes, and ecosystem functions. As a federal entity established at the turn of the last century to provide water in the arid West, drought is a constant consideration and is addressed as part of Reclamation’s core mission.

Reclamation hosts a dynamic and interactive map of current reservoir conditions available for public use on the “Addressing Drought Across the West” portal (https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/512cef7647fe42698dc05dd4e75d4343/page/Home/). Here, users have reservoir storage data at their fingertips for 54 major Reclamation reservoirs along with historical storage data for comparison.

Available within the Drought Portal, and developed to accompany the 2021 SECURE Report to Congress, is the “Water Reliability in the West” portal, an interactive platform that highlights Reclamation’s efforts and investments to mitigate drought impacts, increase drought resiliency, reduce reliance on declining water resources, and increases the efficiency of water delivery. Available for download and interactivity are data for projection in drought duration, changes in drought severity, and changes in precipitation and temperature for two different RCP climate scenarios (RCP 4.5 – lower climate scenario and RCP 8.5 – higher climate scenario). Making projected climate data available to the public via an easy-to-use web portal allows decision makers, city planners, researchers, individuals, and others not only to better prepare for drought, but reduce the impacts of the effects of drought.