Maine’s drought conditions keep getting worse
Dry brown grass at Capitol Park in Augusta on Aug. 4. The U.S. Drought Monitor estimates that nearly 900,000 Mainers are under some level of drought. (Joe Phelan/Staff Photographer)
Most of Maine is back under drought conditions.
More than half the state was experiencing at least moderate drought conditions as of Tuesday, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor update published Thursday. A stretch of the coastline from Cumberland County up through southern Hancock County is under severe drought conditions.
A pocket covering northern Oxford and western Franklin counties is the only part of the state that’s not seeing drought or at least abnormally dry conditions — the level just short of drought.
The Drought Monitor estimates that about 886,000 Mainers are now experiencing some level of drought conditions.
In a moderate drought, trees and landscaping become stressed, wildfires and ground fires increase, hay and grain yields fall, and reservoir and lake levels fall below normal capacity. When a drought reaches severe level, air and water quality are typically poor, groundwater levels drop, crop size and yields shrink, and golf courses begin to conserve water.
Maine’s drought began last summer and reached its peak in late October. At that point, the entire state was experiencing drought conditions, with most Mainers experiencing severe or extreme drought.
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Conditions improved significantly this spring into early summer as many areas of the state saw a stretch of above-average rainfall. Most of Maine was free of a drought designation by late June.
But things took a turn for the worse in July, and conditions have continued to deteriorate through much of August.
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Cameron Barker, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s office in Gray, said Thursday that the regression is simply because not enough rain is falling. In recent weeks, southern and western Maine have gotten only half the amount of rainfall that’s normal for this time of year.
“We needed to receive additional rainfall to keep heading in the right direction,” Barker said. “Unfortunately, we have not done that.”
And while surface conditions improved thanks to the spring rains, Maine’s groundwater has yet to fully recover. Experts say that leaves the area more susceptible to drought should a dry spell hit — as it now has. One small step back can quickly turn into two or three.
The drought in Maine has also been more pronounced along the coastline, with areas farther inland often under less severe drought conditions.
“This year specifically, we saw a lot more thunderstorms focused over portions of northern New Hampshire and northwest Maine,” Barker explained. “We haven’t had a lot of steady, widespread rain, which usually tends to bring the rain to the coast.”
And to get back on track, that’s just what Maine needs.
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Tagged: drought, extreme weather, hot weather, maine weather, National Weather Service, weather
Drew is the night reporter for the Portland Press Herald. He previously covered South Portland, Scarborough and Cape Elizabeth for the Sentry, Leader and Southern Forecaster. Though he is from Massachusetts,. More by Drew Johnson
