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Other disasters such as earthquake cyclone etc are predictable , but draught is an slow onset disaster , it is develop over a period of time and without immediately perceptible change to our environment.
- Vanshita

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Manasi Hajare:-
The drought conditions that are devastating countries in northern and eastern Africa have also hit crops and livestock in several countries in the Near East and South Asia. FAO has issued a Special Alert for Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Pakistan and India.

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Manasi Hajare:-
a Drought as a Disaster Through their socio-économie impacts on affected areas, droughts are recognized as such when they become natural disasters. However, they differ from most other natural disasters because their récurrence in drought-prone areas every few years is practically certain.

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Examples of drought impacts on society include anxiety or depression about economic losses, conflicts when there is not enough water, reduced incomes, fewer recreational activities, higher incidents of heat stroke, and even loss of human life. Drought conditions can also provide a substantial increase in wildfire risk.

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Examples of drought impacts on society include anxiety or depression about economic losses, conflicts when there is not enough water, reduced incomes, fewer recreational activities, higher incidents of heat stroke, and even loss of human life. Drought conditions can also provide a substantial increase in wildfire risk.

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Aasawari Kale

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Meteorological drought usually precedes other kinds of drought and is said to occur when the seasonal rainfall received over an area is less than 25% of its long-term average value. It is classified as moderate drought if the rainfall deficit is 26-50% and severe drought when the deficit exceeds 50% of the normal.

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Meteorological drought usually precedes other kinds of drought and is said to occur when the seasonal rainfall received over an area is less than 25% of its long-term average value. It is classified as moderate drought if the rainfall deficit is 26-50% and severe drought when the deficit exceeds 50% of the normal.

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Aasawari Kale

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Drought is different from many other natural hazards in that it lacks easily identified onsets and terminations (Maybank et al., 1995). It is also unusual in that it is a hazard of scarcity rather than one of excess. ... There are three major characteristics of drought – intensity, duration, and spatial extent.

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Drought is different from many other natural hazards in that it lacks easily identified onsets and terminations (Maybank et al., 1995). It is also unusual in that it is a hazard of scarcity rather than one of excess. ... There are three major characteristics of drought – intensity, duration, and spatial extent.

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Aasawari Kale

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Manasi Hajare:-
Meteorological drought usually precedes other kinds of drought and is said to occur when the seasonal rainfall received over an area is less than 25% of its long-term average value. It is classified as moderate drought if the rainfall deficit is 26-50% and severe drought when the deficit exceeds 50% of the normal.

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Manasi Hajare:-
Drought can also affect people's health and safety. Examples of drought impacts on society include anxiety or depression about economic losses, conflicts when there is not enough water, reduced incomes, fewer recreational activities, higher incidents of heat stroke, and even loss of human life.

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Environment degradations , especially the loss of green cover affects rainfall received in the region , increasing the possibility of water stress . In areas where vegetation has decreased over the years , rainwater is easily washed away into rivers and in the sea and water is not retained by the soil , leading to low productivity . Over exploitation of water depletes the source faster that rainfall could recharge it , especially in areas that receive scanty rainfall .
- Vanshita

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Countries were affected by drought in 2018 because of less rainfall .
- Vanshita

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1. Sudan                                     2. Eritrea                                                       3. Afghanistan                           4. Pakistan                                 5. Iran                                          6. Somalia                                  7. Ethiopia                                         

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1. Sudan                                     2. Eritrea                                                       3. Afghanistan                           4. Pakistan                                 5. Iran                                          6. Somalia                                  7. Ethiopia                                         

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Aasawari Kale

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Manasi Hajare:-
Those parts of the world which will not take preventive actions and to which drought will come as a surprise will be affected the most. Countries and regions most at risk usually share the following characteristics

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Drought is a condition of acute scarcity of water , food , fodder and employment due to scanty rainfall in an area . Crop failure is a serious consequence of drought . If is develop over a period of time and with out immediately perceptible change to our environment . That’s why it is also called as ‘ slow onset ’ disaster .
- Vanshita

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Aasawari Kale

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Manasi Hajare:-

1. Avoid flushing the toilet unnecessarily. ...

2. Take short showers instead of baths. ...

3. Avoid letting the water run while brushing your teeth, washing your face or shaving.

4. Place a bucket in the shower to catch excess water for watering plants.

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Choose a water-efficient irrigation system such as drip irrigation for your trees, shrubs, and flowers. Turn irrigation down in fall and off in winter. Water manually in winter only if needed. Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants to reduce evaporation and keep the soil cool.

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Choose a water-efficient irrigation system such as drip irrigation for your trees, shrubs, and flowers. Turn irrigation down in fall and off in winter. Water manually in winter only if needed. Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants to reduce evaporation and keep the soil cool.

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Aasawari Kale

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A drought is a period of time when an area or region experiences below-normal precipitation. The lack of adequate precipitation, either rain or snow, can cause reduced soil moisture or groundwater, diminished stream flow, crop damage, and a general water shortage. ... A drought may last for weeks, months, or even years

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A drought is a period of time when an area or region experiences below-normal precipitation. The lack of adequate precipitation, either rain or snow, can cause reduced soil moisture or groundwater, diminished stream flow, crop damage, and a general water shortage. ... A drought may last for weeks, months, or even years

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Aasawari Kale

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Manasi hajare:-
A drought is a period of time when an area or region experiences below-normal precipitation. The lack of adequate precipitation, either rain or snow, can cause reduced soil moisture or groundwater, diminished stream flow, crop damage, and a general water shortage. ... A drought may last for weeks, months, or even years

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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Opinion

Drought and natural disaster both hurt, but they're not the same.

Disasters like fires, floods and cyclones cause blunt-force trauma wiping out homes and infrastructure in minutes.

Drought is more like a cancer, it creeps in depleting landscapes and bank balances in our rural communities.

The reality is they need different treatments. The government has a different approach to them for this reason.

It's not easy to compare a disaster to a drought.

Recovery from a fire and flood can be measured by the rebuilding of houses or roads.

Drought on the other hand, is about day to day financial survival.

State and Federal governments have agreed to individual responsibilities under national drought policy which has enjoyed bipartisan support since 1992 and was subsequently updated and unanimously agreed to last year after the Prime Ministers Drought Summit.

From a federal perspective our drought strategy is clear and it comes in 3 parts.

Firstly in the here and now, keeping people in business.

This is through programs like Farm Household Allowance which has paid up to $37,000 to farming families to for household expenses.

Cheap shots from city seats is easy to do but living amongst it and delivering is another. - David Littleproud

Concessional loans that can save farmers up to $67,000 every year in interest or just providing additional Rural Financial Counselling staff to assist with paperwork to name a few.

Secondly it's about investing in the community. We've provided $1 million to drought affected shires who use local tradies and materials from local hardware stores to build community projects with a lasting legacy.

There's also more than $30 million to support communities with locally targeted mental health programs.

Thirdly it's about the future, to build the resilience so rural communities and farmers are on the front-foot future droughts.

For the first time in our nation's history we have a financial centrepiece to deliver that through the $5 billion Future Fund.

The Fund provides a $100 million dividend for specific programs targeted to build resilience in the good and bad years.

It's complimented by things like instant tax write-off for fodder storage infrastructure or Farm Management Deposits. Tax preparedness incentives cost the Australian taxpayer more than $500 million per year alone.

All up, to date we've committed more than $7 billion to this drought with $2b of that is available in the here and now.

But tackling drought is like going up a set of stairs. As the drought escalates you take another step up in your response and that's what this government has done and will continue to do. That's a National Drought Strategy in action.

Sadly I've had a front row seat of this drought as the member for Maranoa.

Some parts of the electorate are going into year eight.

Commentators on both sides of the climate debate should think about whether they will weaponise the drought through their own philosophical views.

People in drought don't care about the philosophy they just want outcomes.

That's why, in partnership with state governments and farmers we're investing more than $1 billion a year to give them the tools to adapt.

This includes best R&D in the world so our farmers have better genetics and new resilient varieties of crops.

Cheap shots from city seats is easy to do but living amongst it and delivering is another.

Federal and State governments all have a role to play in this and it's time we all focused on delivery, live up to each of our responsibilities and remember what's at the end of this, real people.

David Littleproud is Minister for Water, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management and Member for Maranoa.

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Drought needs a different response than sudden natural disasters

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Drought and natural disaster both hurt, but they're not the same. Disasters like fires, floods and cyclones cause blunt-force trauma wiping out homes and infrastructure in minutes. Drought is more like a cancer, it creeps in depleting landscapes and bank balances in our rural communities. The reality is they need different treatments.

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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https://factly.inVarious parts of the country are reeling under a severe drought. But how is drought measured and when is it declared? What are the different ministries involved in drought relief? Get more India News and Business News on Zee Business.

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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During dry and hot weather periods, it is common to find dry and cracked earth without even a single shed of water or wet areas. Lakes, rivers, and streams may as well run dry. Well, these are the typical earth conditions that define drought in layman terms.

Drought can simply be defined as extended periods of precipitation shortage, normally for a season or more resulting in water deficiency for some human activities or environmental sustainability. Human activities such as farming, irrigation, or domestic uses of water are normally highly impacted during droughts.

Plant and animal life are similarly affected. Accordingly, drought is a natural event arising due to less precipitation than expected thus defining the intricacies witnessed when the demands for water supply are higher than the available water for some activity, humans, or the environment.

Causes of Drought

Rainfall or Precipitation Deficiency

Droughts take place whenever there is prolonged periods of rainfall deficiency for a season or more and usually when there is a lack of anticipated rainfall or precipitation. When a region goes for long periods without any rain, especially for more than a season, then the situation leads to dry conditions and water deficiency which qualify as drought.

Farmers, for instance, plant in expectation of rain and so when it doesn't rain as expected, drought conditions are experienced. In such cases, it is frequently termed as agricultural drought.

Human activities play a relatively significant role in the management of the water cycle. Human acts such as deforestation, construction, and agriculture negatively impact the water cycle. Trees and vegetation cover are essential for the water cycle as it helps to limit evaporation, stores water, and attracts rainfall.

In this sense, deforestation - clearing vegetation cover and cutting down trees increases evaporation and lessens the ability of the soil to hold water leading to increased susceptibility of desertification. Deforestation can also influence the occurrence of dry conditions since it reduces forest's watershed potential. Construction and agricultural activities may as well reduce the overall supply quantity of water, resulting in dry spells.

Lakes, rivers, and streams are the primary suppliers of downstream surface waters in various geographical regions around the globe. In extremely hot seasons or because of certain human activities, these surface water flows may dry out downstream contributing to drought - meaning the demands for water supply become higher than the available water.

Irrigation systems and hydro-electric dams are some of the human activities that can significantly diminish the amount of water flowing downstream to other areas.

Human actions have contributed to more and more emissions of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere thus resulting in the continued rise of the earth's average temperatures. Consequently, evaporation and evapotranspiration levels have risen, and the higher temperatures have led to wildfires and extended dry spell periods. The global warming situation tends to exacerbate the drought conditions. Some of the worst droughts witnessed in sub-Saharan Africa have been associated with global warming and climate change.

Effects of Drought

The effects of drought are widespread and have devastating effects on the environment and the society as a whole. Water use is part and parcel of almost every human activity as well as the life of plants and animals. On this basis, extended deficiency of water can affect the society in various ways both directly and indirectly. The effects can therefore generally be categorized as environmental, economic, and social.

Environmental Impacts of Droughts

Animal and plants die off as a consequence of drought. Mainly, the damages arise out of extensive destruction of the wildlife habitats and reduction in water quality and quantity. Some plants and animals may completely fail to recover after the drought. The overall climate, the rocks, and soils are also affected, negatively impacting various living and non-living factors.

Surface waters such as lakes, rivers, ponds, creeks, streams and lagoons dry out during extended dry conditions which destroy natural habitats. Most especially, aquatic life and other wildlife dependent on these water bodies die or become endangered, destroying the entire food chain and alters the ecosystem.

Soil moisture, essential for soil microbial activities, is reduced in drought conditions. As a result, soil quality is lowered because of minimized organic activity and continued dry spell which kills soil organisms. The end result is dry and cracked soil and it even becomes easier for decertification to occur.

Unsuitable conditions for plant and vegetation survival

Drought conditions make it unsuitable for plants and vegetation cover to survive. Besides, fertile lands are lost as a result of drought, and in consequence, desertification sets in. Desertification is whereby the lands become infertile and bare, frequently as a result of overgrazing and is exacerbated by drought which makes it difficult for such lands to recover.

Migration and even death of Animals and Wildlife

Animals and wildlife are forced to migrate in drought conditions since they have to move for long distances to get water and food. The prevailing circumstances during droughts also make it difficult for the survival of the animals. When the wildlife and animals migrate, they end up in new locations where they can be vulnerable, endangered because of new threats. This leads to loss of biodiversity and disruption of the natural ecosystems.

The economic impacts of drought are realized from monetary and business losses incurred during droughts by governments, businesses, families, and at the individual level. These are some of the examples of economic effects of droughts

Increased budgetary spending by farmers

During droughts, farmers spend more money on crop irrigation so as maintain crop yields. Also, lots of water has to be availed for watering the farm animals to ensure the daily water consumption standards are met. Hence, farmers have to spend more money to buy water or drill wells to keep the crops and livestock nourished with enough water.

Often, low crop yields are experienced during drought periods. Therefore, farmers usually undergo major economic losses because of low crop yields. They pay for lots of inputs and labor, but the outcomes are less.

Industrial and governmental losses

Industries and businesses in farm equipment manufacturing and merchandising respectively loss millions of dollars when farmers lack the money to buy their resources. Governments, on the other hand, have to allocate more money and spend even more for drought mitigation as they have to cushion the farmers and the entire society from the adverse impacts of the droughts. Such governmental monetary spending includes funds for emergency supplies, seed funds, and availing other relevant drought mitigation resources.

Higher energy cost for economies dependent on hydro-power

Extended dry spells can translate to lowered water levels in rivers and dams used to generate hydro-power. This means higher costs of energy for businesses because the hydro-energy companies are driven to operate below capacity.

Businesses at times have to use fuel-powered generators which result in higher business operation costs. At the same time, increased energy demands lead to increased cost of grid energy, which leads to economic losses both for energy industries and businesses.

Social implications are possibly the most felt effects of drought. They are the direct effects to people and communities. They include

Since water scarcity is high during drought conditions, water quality significantly depreciates. This means the availability of clean water for drinking and water for sanitation and cleaning may not be sufficient. Droughts also increase the concentration levels nutrients, chemicals, and solid particles or impurities in surface waters. As a result, managing and preventing waterborne diseases such as typhoid and cholera becomes increasingly difficult, especially in poor regions.

Hunger, anemia, malnutrition, and deaths

Hunger, anemia, malnutrition and deaths of people are often witnessed in drought-stricken areas. Drought is a great causal factor for low food production, thus, when experienced in poorer regions the effects of malnutrition, hunger, anemia and mortalities are compounded since there is little food available for consumption.

Often, it is as a result of lack of sufficient food nutrition that directly contributes to diseases and health vulnerability. Common cases of hunger, anemia, malnutrition, and mortalities are recorded in poorer nations.

People are forced to shift to other places in search for better living conditions during droughts. This contributes to loss of livelihoods and disorients small-scale farmers who are dependent on their farm produce. People forced to migrate also undergo lots of stress, anxiety and are compelled to indulge in strenuous activities to provide for their families. Women, children, and the elderly are the most affected.

Comments

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Causes and Effects of Drought | Earth Eclipse

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During dry and hot weather periods, it is common to find dry and cracked earth without even a single shed of water or wet areas. Lakes, rivers, and streams may as well run dry.

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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Extreme droughts are likely to become much more frequent across central Europe, and if global greenhouse gas emissions rise strongly they could happen seven times more often, new research has shown.

The area of crops likely to be affected by drought is also set to increase, and under sharply rising CO2 levels would nearly double in central Europe in the second half of this century, to more than 40m hectares (154,440 sq miles) of farmland.

Central Europe suffered its biggest and most damaging drought on record in 2018 and 2019, which had two of the three warmest summer periods ever recorded on the continent. The summers were also much drier than average, and more than half of the region suffered severe drought conditions.

Rivers and watercourses dried up, some crops were ruined and wildfires increased during these two years of extreme drought. The only other drought on record to come close, in 1949 and 1950, affected a land area about a third smaller.

By comparing the conditions with weather records dating back to 1766, and using computer models of climate change, researchers from UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research in Leipzig, Germany, were able to forecast that moderate reductions in greenhouse gases from their current levels would halve the likelihood of such extreme droughts, and shrink the affected land area by nearly 40%.

Rohini Kumar, one of the authors of the study, told the Guardian the findings were concerning. "The findings indicate that introducing measures to reduce future carbon emissions may lower the risk of more frequent consecutive drought events across Europe. On the one hand, we need to step up our efforts to reduce greenhouse gases worldwide, and at the same time deal with strategies to adapt to climate change."

Strong reductions in greenhouse gases would reduce the frequency of such extreme droughts to "a very negligible number", said Kumar.

The paper is published on Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

The study adds to an increasing body of research showing the impacts of global heating on Europe. Previous studies have suggested that southern and central Europe will experience more drought, with one study projecting that European cities will become much hotter, with London forecast to have a climate more like Barcelona by 2050 and southern and central European cities seeing more extreme levels of heat.

Constantin Zohner, of the Crowther Lab at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, who was not involved in the research, said the study showed the consequences of failing to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

"[These] findings are an important warning to the world that continued emissions will strongly exacerbate future drought events, threatening ecosystems, agriculture and human wellbeing," he told the Guardian. "The study, once more, highlights the urgent need for climate action in order to maintain the functionality of ecosystems and ensure water supply to future generations."

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Extreme droughts in central Europe likely to increase sevenfold

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Extreme droughts are likely to become much more frequent across central Europe, and if global greenhouse gas emissions rise strongly they could happen seven times more often, new research has shown.

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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Fact 1: What is a drought?

A drought is a stage during which farmers are urgently waiting for rain because the soils run dry. The rivers have low water levels and the vegetation turns its color from green to yellow during the period of the growing season. Droughts are slowly emerging over time. Different drought measurements indicate different levels of severity, which can depend e.g. on the duration of dryness, or the response of the vegetation to dry conditions, or the amount of water stored in rivers, water reservoirs or in the soil.

Fact 2: What can we do about droughts?

With climate change, droughts will become more frequent and more severe. We need to plan for preventing droughts proactively by looking at how much water is needed and what kind of water resources are available under different drought conditions. We need to better understand which community and which agricultural land are at risk to droughts and why, and then we need to identify measures for prevention and build capacity locally. Examples for drought risk reduction measures are introducing more drought-resistant crops or livestock in at-risk regions, and establishing fodder banks and water reservoirs during periods of no drought, which can reduce the potential impacts during the next drought.

Fact 3: What makes droughts dangerous?

If not managed well, droughts can trigger a vicious circle where human well-being, the economy and the environment spiral downwards fast. If there is not enough water for agricultural production, farmers lose their harvest and livelihoods, the population is exposed to high food prices on the market and the most vulnerable face food insecurity. The need for more agricultural land to produce enough food under drought conditions might lead to deforestation, which reduces the capacity of the environment to store water. If there is not enough water for personal hygiene, people get sick, and if there is even not enough safe drinking water, the population may run into conflicts.

Fact 4: Why were countries affected by drought in 2018?

In 2017 and 2018, we have seen several exceptional water crises around the globe. Cape Town in South Africa was about to reach Day Zero, the day when water taps would have run dry in the city. The east coast of Australia recorded less than a fifth of its typical rainfall per season, the US drought monitor detected highest level of drought severity in central US states, and farmers in Germany were applying for governmental aid to overcome their financial losses due to lost harvests in the dry and hot summer in Europe. There is no single reason that can explain all these drought events, and each of them has its own narrative. South Africa for example was experiencing the late impacts of an exceptional drought in the years 2015/2016, which was at that time mainly triggered by the strongest recorded El Niño year, where warm surface temperature in the tropical Pacific Ocean brought warm and dry winds to South Africa. From there onwards, water levels in the reservoirs were continually decreasing, due to high demand of the growing population in the city of Cape Town combined with water losses due to leakages in the supply system and relatively dry weather conditions.

Fact 5: Which countries will be most affected by droughts in the future?

Those parts of the world which will not take preventive actions and to which drought will come as a surprise will be affected the most. Countries and regions most at risk usually share the following characteristics: Regions with large share of degraded land, where the livelihood of people depend on agriculture, where irrigation schemes cannot help to overcome lack of rain and those with little resources and capacities to cope with a drought. However, there are many different scenarios on how different parts of the world will be affected by droughts, ranging from the high-tech industrialized agricultural or energy sectors, which can experience large-scale economic losses due to severe drought conditions, to small-scale farmers who fully depend on the farm income.

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5 Facts on Drought - Institute for Environment and Human Security

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A drought is a stage during which farmers are urgently waiting for rain because the soils run dry. The rivers have low water levels and the vegetation turns its color from green to yellow during the period of the growing season. Droughts are slowly emerging over time.

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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Droughts are prolonged periods of less-than-average rainfall. They can last from several weeks to years, causing significant hardship due to lack of water for drinking, cleaning, and watering crops. If you live in a drought-prone area, it...

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Nakshatra Tannirwar

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Every year as summer approaches, areas around the world grow concerned about seasonal drought. Throughout the winter, many places monitor precipitation and the snow pack to prepare for what the warmer, drier months may bring. In addition, there are areas where drought is a regular year to year occurrence that lasts longer than just the summer. From hot deserts to the freezing poles, drought is something that affects plants, animals, and people worldwide.

Drought is defined as a period in which a region has a deficit in its water supply. Drought is a normal feature of climate which happens in all climate zones from time to time.

Usually, drought is talked about in one of two perspectives- meteorological and hydrological. A drought in terms of meteorology takes into account deficiencies in measured precipitation. Each year's measurements are then compared to what is determined as a "normal" amount of precipitation and drought is determined from there. For hydrologists, droughts are monitored by checking stream flow and lake, reservoir, and aquifer water levels. Precipitation is also considered here as it contributes to the water levels.

In addition, there are agricultural droughts that can impact crop production and cause changes to the natural distribution of various species. The farms themselves can also cause droughts to happen as soil is depleted and therefore cannot absorb as much water, but they can be impacted by natural droughts as well.

Because drought is defined as a deficit in water supply, it can be caused by a number of factors. The most important one though relates to the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere as this is what creates precipitation. More rain, sleet, hail, and snow can occur where there are moist, low pressure air systems. If there is an above average presence of dry, high pressure air systems instead, less moisture is available to produce precipitation (because these systems cannot hold as much water vapor). This results in a deficit of water for the areas over which they move.

The same can also happen when winds shift air masses and warm, dry, continental air moves over an area as opposed to cooler, moist, oceanic air masses. El Nino, which affects the ocean's water temperature, also has an impact on precipitation levels because in years when the temperature cycle is present, it can shift the air masses above the ocean, often making wet places dry (drought prone) and dry places wet.

Finally, deforestation for agriculture and/or building combined with the resultant erosion can also cause drought to begin because as soil is moved away from an area it is less able to absorb moisture when it falls.

Since many areas, regardless of their climatic region, are prone to drought, different definitions of the stages of drought have developed. They are all somewhat similar however, usually ranging from a drought warning or watch, which is the least severe. This stage is declared when a drought could be approaching. The next stages are mostly called drought emergency, disaster, or critical drought stage. This final stage begins after a drought has occurred for a long period and water sources begin to be depleted. During this stage, public water use is limited and oftentimes drought disaster plans are put into place.

Regardless of a drought's stage, there are short and long term consequences with any drought because of nature and society's dependence on water. Problems associated with drought can have economic, environmental, and social impacts on both the areas where they occur and areas that have relations with those where the drought happens.

Most of the economic impacts of drought are associated with agriculture and the income generated from crops. In times of drought, the lack of water can often cause a decline in crop yields, and thus a reduction in income for farmers and an increase in the market price of products since there is less to go around. In a prolonged drought, unemployment of farmers and even retailers can occur, having a significant impact on the economy of the area and those with economic ties to it.

In terms of environmental problems, drought can result in insect infestations and plant diseases, increased erosion, habitat and landscape degradation, a decrease in air quality and that of what water is present, as well as an increased risk of fire because of drier vegetation. In short-term droughts, natural environments can often rebound, but when there are long term droughts, plant and animal species can suffer tremendously, and over time desertification can happen with an extreme lack of moisture.

Finally, droughts have social impacts that can cause disputes between users of available water, inequalities in water distribution between wealthy and poor, disparities in areas in need of disaster relief, and a decline in health.

In addition, in rural developing countries population migration can begin when one area experiences drought because often people will go to areas where water and its benefits are more prevalent. This then depletes the natural resources of the new area, can create conflicts among neighboring populations, and takes workers away from the original area. Over time, increased poverty and social unrest is likely to develop.

Because severe drought is often slow in its development, it is relatively easy to tell when one is coming and in areas that are capable, there are several mitigation measures that can be used to reduce the impacts felt by drought.

The most important steps in lessening the effects of drought though are soil and water conservation. By protecting soil, it is better able to absorb precipitation, but it can also help farmers to use less water because it is absorbed and not as much runs off. It also creates less water pollution by the pesticides and fertilizers present in most farm runoff.

In water conservation, public use is often regulated. This mostly includes watering yards, washing cars and outdoor fixtures such as patio tables, and swimming pools. Cities such as Phoenix, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada have also implemented the use of xeriscape landscaping to reduce the need to water outdoor plants in dry environments. In addition, Water conservation devices like low-flow toilets, shower heads, and washing machines can be required for use inside the home.

Finally, desalination of seawater, water recycling, and rainwater harvesting are all things that are currently under development to build on existing water supplies and further reduce the impacts of drought in dry climates. Whatever method is used however, extensive monitoring of precipitation and water usage are the best way to prepare for a drought, inform the public on the problem, and implement conservation strategies.

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Every year as summer approaches, areas around the world grow concerned about seasonal drought. Throughout the winter, many places monitor precipitation and the snow pack to prepare for what the warmer, drier months may bring. In addition, there are areas where drought is a regular year to year occurrence that lasts longer than just the summer.