Drought Hazards and Statistics for Ohio

Source: Jeffrey C. Rogers, State Climatologist for Ohio, based on notes from the Governor's Drought Assessment Committee Meetings

Some of the hydrologic, economic and agricultural impacts and concerns of the 1988 and 1991-1992 droughts in Ohio.

Water supplies

increased drawdown in wells, pumping over larger underground areas, yielding potential for contaminants and unwanted minerals
loss of public ground water supplies (drying up)
decline in quality of water supplies, shortages of potable water

Rivers

extreme low levels leading to abnormally warm water, low turbulence, low dissolved oxygen content, higher contaminant concentrations, and reduced ability to accept and dilute industrial discharges
susceptibility to local dumping of heated water by power plants and industrial sources, plant by-passes and spills
fertilizer flushed into rivers increasing the ammonia and nitrates which affect fish and human babies (respectively)

Human Health

Heat stress on the elderly with no air conditioning
Increased stress (financial, psychological) in farm families
Increased illness from improperly developed water supplies

Economic/Financial

Loss of income: migrant workers, businesses on lakes/reservoirs
Water use restrictions and penalties
Food price increases, especially wheat, corn products

Agricultural

failure of hay cuttings, decreases in corn, soybean, wheat production
increased slaughter of livestock due to feed shortages, lowered prices
increased insect activity and diseases in plants, crops
livestock heat stress

Fish/Fisheries

increased mortality due to factors listed above under "rivers"
increased mortality at hatcheries, susceptibility to disease

Wildlife (deer wild turkey, rabbits)

failure in dry springs to produce seed and biomass
lack of insect supply (protein) for young birds
haying and grazing privileges granted on conservation reserve acreage, affecting game/non-game birds if permitted during peak nesting season, mowing of grasses in these areas

Timber/Forests

increased fire hazard
decline in tree growth potential during prolonged drought
failure of new plantings, weakened old growth by insects, disease

Recreation

low water levels lead to boating/canoeing restrictions, cessation
sports fishing affected by low water quality

The monthly, seasonal and annually averaged statewide precipitation, and precipitation extremes, for the period 1854-1990. Data primarily include cooperative weather station observations.


MONTH     MEAN   STANDARD  MAXIMUM(YEAR) PERCENT   MINIMUM(YEAR)  PERCENT
                 DEVIATION               OF NORMAL                OF
                                                                  NORMAL

January   2.84"   1.48"    9.57" (1937)    337%     0.63" (1981)     22%

February  2.50"   1.22"    6.49" (1883)    260%     0.44" (1978)     18%

March     3.34"   1.41"    8.15" (1913)    244%     0.26" (1910)      8%

April     3.28"   1.17"    6.37" (1893)    194%     0.92" (1971)     28%

May       3.78"   1.36"    7.69" (1858)    203%     0.78" (1934)     21%

June      3.96"   1.30"    8.57" (1855)    216%     0.86" (1988)     22%

July      3.96    1.26"    8.88" (1992)*   224%     1.52" (1930)     38%

August    3.39"   1.19"    6.78" (1980)    200%     1.16" (1881)     34%

September 3.02"   1.41"    9.67" (1866)    320%     0.59" (1908)     20%

October   2.56"   1.24"    6.30" (1919)    246%     0.23" (1924)      9%

November  2.89"   1.31"    9.17" (1985)    317%     0.40" (1904)     14%

December  2.81"   1.08"    7.64" (1990)    272%     0.51" (1955)     18%

ANNUAL   38.33"   4.75"   51.38" (1990)    134%    26.50" (1963)     69%


SEASON    MEAN   STANDARD  MAXIMUM(YEAR) PERCENT   MINIMUM(YEAR)  PERCENT
                 DEVIATION               OF NORMAL                OF
                                                                  NORMAL

Winter    8.15"   2.27"   15.45" (1950)    190%     3.53" (1977)     43% 

Spring   10.40"   2.41"   16.21" (1964)    156%     5.26" (1941)     51%

Summer   11.31"   2.36"   18.46" (1958)    163%     5.88" (1894)     52%

Autumn    8.47"   2.38"   16.11" (1866)    190%     2.80" (1908)     33%

*Not used in the July or annual mean, replaces 8.06" in 1896.

List of the driest 12 month periods in Ohio, 1854-1992, as measured using monthly precipitation data. The precipitation amount is the 12-month sum of the monthly statewide precipitation average obtained using all available cooperative weather stations. The list presents the lowest 12-month averaged value occurring during a period when several adjacent 12-month periods may have also had less than 29 inches of precipitation (approximately two standard deviations below normal). The list continues with amounts above 29 inches until the 1991-1992 drought, shown for comparative purposes.


                            Time Period       Precipitation Total

                    April 1930 - March 1931:  21.93 inches
               November 1894 - October 1895:  25.56 inches
                    January - December 1963:  26.50 inches
                    January - December 1934:  26.69 inches
               February 1953 - January 1954:  27.44 inches
               February 1856 - January 1857:  27.81 inches
                September 1987- August 1988:  28.33 inches
                      May 1874 - April 1875:  28.44 inches  
                    April 1863 - March 1864:  28.49 inches
               February 1960 - January 1961:  28.53 inches
                    April 1871 - March 1872:  28.60 inches
               December 1900 - November 1901:  28.60 inches
                      July 1924 - June 1925:  28.66 inches
                       June 1940 - May 1941:  28.74 inches
                     May 1904 - April 1905:  29.33 inches
                    August 1943 - July 1944:  29.58 inches
                     May 1991 - April 1992:  29.97 inches

The longest periods in which the 12-month summed Ohio statewide precipitation average does not fall below 29 inches (about two standard deviations below the long-term annual mean). The months listed are the last (twelfth) of a 12-month precipitation summation period.


                    Monthly time span          Duration

                 March 1964 - May 1988:  24 years,  3 months
                  June 1902 - May 1925:  23 years 
                  May 1875 - July 1894:  19 years,  3 months
            August 1944 - October 1953:   9 years,  3 months
            April 1864 - February 1872:   7 years, 11 months
            April 1857 - February 1864:   6 years, 11 months
          August 1954 - December, 1960:   6 years,  5 months

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