Diego Lopez, Reporter
Editor’s Note: The Cibola Citizen apologizes for the interruption in our regular report in the month of August. The absence of federal data for July disrupted our continuity. We are committed to resuming our regular updates to keep Cibola County informed on the evolving drought situation.
August 2023 was the 32nd wettest August in 129 years of data tracking in the area. According to the National Integrated Drought System, May saw a rainfall deficit of 0.8 inches of rain than usual.
The east, and especially the northeast portion of Cibola, is the only area of the county facing abnormally dry conditions. Currently, 6.11 percent of the county is facing abnormally dry conditions that make agricultural growing more difficult.
From the start of the year, drought conditions have worsened in the county, where in January, where 0.39 percent of the county was in the “Severe Drought” designation. In August percentage of Cibola in Severe Drought has worsened to 50.52 percent.
The USDA tracks two categories as the worst levels of drought in the county: “Extreme” and “Exceptional” drought. Today, zero percent of Cibola County is in either of those categories.
The northeast area of Cibola is where researchers at the USDA and the US Climate Predictions Center are most concerned drought will persist.
Current Drought Rating
The later months of 2022 saw an increase to precipitation which helped to bring Cibola out of exceptional drought conditions. Thanks to continued precipitation through 2023, Cibola’s drought conditions improved from last year.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, 421 acres of hay are in drought. This is compared to zero acres of hay estimated to be in drought, from February, March, and April. 28 acres of haylage are in drought, compared to zero acres of haylage estimated to be in drought back in February, March, and April.
The USDA estimates that 9,653 cattle, and 2,841 sheep are in drought compared to zero cattle and zero sheep estimated to be in drought across Cibola in February, March, and April.
“Exceptional Drought” Tracking
Cibola’s rainfall lessened the shock of the “Exceptional Drought” back in May.
2013 was the first time Cibola entered the “exceptional” category, the rating lasted for several months before ending.
While the county remained in drought, it was not given the “exceptional” rating again until 2020. The rating was assigned in December, and persisted through most of 2021.
May of 2022 saw the worst “Exceptional Drought” in county history. The United States Drought Monitor tracks the severity and length of drought across the country. The severity of 2022’s “Exceptional Drought” was starkly more severe than either of the previous two times this rating was assigned to Cibola. However, 2022’s situation lasted for a shorter amount of time than either of the previous two instances.
In 2022, Cibola suffered through the driest May over the past 128 years of drought tracking in the county, the area was suffering so badly that scientists who conduct drought tracking declared Cibola was in an “Exceptional Drought” the worst level of drought recognized by the federal government. In June 2022, a large wildfire, the Cerro Bandera Fire, destroyed 939 acres of land in the Zuni Mountains. Fire personnel in Cibola rallied together after the fire, asking for increased fire restrictions through the month of June, especially because the Independence Day holiday was rapidly approaching and residents often celebrate with fireworks. At the time, the drought rating in Cibola was at the highest rating recognized by federal authorities who track drought across the country. Increased rainfall at the end of June, continued through August, was enough for local governments to lift some firework and open burning restrictions. Rainfall, despite expectations by meteorologists, did not stop fully but has decreased from earlier months. Cibola’s drought conditions have improved measurably since the driest days of 2022.
Drought Data
The National Integrated Drought Information System is a tool used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; a department of the United States known by many as the team who tracks Santa Claus during the Christmas holiday. NIDIS has been tracking drought in the Cibola area since 2006, and they use other historic data and environmental sampling to get a drought reading on years prior, all the way up to 1894.
Much of the data Cibola Citizen utilizes comes from NIDIS, but also NOAA and the US Department of Agriculture and the National Agricultural Statistics Service. These entities supply data for Cibola’s acreage of hay and number of livestock.
Courtesy NOAA, NDIS, USDA