Texas Drought Approaching 2011’s Historic Levels
More than 45% of the contiguous US is currently in drought, with many parts of the southwest experiencing severe, extreme or exceptional drought. And no state has it worse than Texas.
Officials say 2022 is already one for the record books in Texas, with more than 80% of the state facing drought conditions most of the year. Comparisons are already being made to the drought of 2011, with some believing this year could eclipse 2011 as the state’s worst.
About 17% of all land in Texas is experiencing “exceptional” drought, the highest such figure for late June since 2011. That year, over 70% of the state’s land experienced “exceptional” drought in late June.
The driest year on record for Texas was 2011, causing an estimated $7.62 billion in crop and livestock losses.
According to a report in the Texas Tribune, new data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows there is a reason for Texans to be concerned about the weather this year: Last month tied for the warmest May on record in the state, along with May 2018. The early heat was followed by more drought.
The wide-spread drought in West Texas has already surpassed some 2011 records, The Tribune reports. Midland, Tex., had its driest period on record from September 2021 to May 31, when it received only 8% of its normal rainfall. The second driest was in 2011.
Texas can expect more of the same in the season ahead, the lead meteorologist for the state’s principal grid-management agency reported on June 21, the first day of summer.
It’s “close to a lock” that Summer 2022 in Texas will be hotter than last year’s summer, the forecaster, Chris Coleman, told ERCOT’s board. In the immediate prelude to the just-starting summer, May 2022 was hotter in Texas than May 2011, Coleman added.
