New Mexico Drought Status

Another exceptionally dry month caused further deterioration of drought conditions across New Mexico. The entire state is currently classified with abnormally dry conditions or a more severe drought category, according the April 19, 2011, National Drought Monitor report (Figures 5a–b). In the past 30 days, drought conditions dramatically intensified across the southern two-thirds of the state, where severe conditions expanded northward and extreme drought expanded north and eastward. About 42 percent of the state is currently classified with severe drought and 33 percent is classified with extreme drought, compared to just 36 and 10 percent, respectively, in mid-March. The National Weather Service in Albuquerque reported that March was the third driest on record over the past 117 years. Statewide, New Mexico has recorded only 30 percent of average precipitation for the past three months, the critical winter wet season. The National Weather Service also reported that widespread fire restrictions are in place across the state in response to the severity of drought conditions.