Minnesota Drought Conditions Holding Steady

(KNSI) — The latest U.S. Drought Monitor data, released Thursday, shows drought conditions holding steady across central Minnesota.

Benton County remains 98.12% in severe drought, unchanged from last week. The county’s Drought Severity and Coverage Index, or DSCI, held flat at 298, among the highest in the region.

The DSCI rolls an area’s entire drought picture into one number, making trends easier to track over time. It weighs each drought category by severity, from D0, or abnormally dry, up through D4, or exceptional drought, and adds them together. The score runs from 0, meaning no drought at all, to 500, meaning the entire area is in exceptional drought.

Sherburne County also shows no movement from last week, with severe drought covering 93.93%. Its DSCI held steady at 294.

Stearns County’s numbers did go up, with moderate drought covering 99.98% this week, versus 93.43% last week. Severe drought still covers 1.99%. The county’s index rose from 195 to 202. Three months ago, Stearns County had no drought.

Statewide, 80.39% of Minnesota is abnormally dry or worse. That’s down from 87.49% last week and 92.85% two weeks ago. Severe drought coverage also eased slightly, dropping from 29.88% last week to 27.04% this week. Two weeks ago, it was 32.57%. The statewide DSCI fell from 188 last week to 174.

The longer trend is less encouraging. Three months ago, 28.06% of the state had no drought designation. This week, that figure is down to 19.61%.

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