Drought in Central Yampa River Basin, Colorado

At the beginning of the month of September, the US Drought Monitor analyzed an area of Exceptional (D4) Drought conditions covering roughly 1/3 of Colorado Zone 002 - Central Yampa River Basin, with the remainder of the zone under Extreme (D3) Drought conditions. The area of Exceptional (D4) Drought was removed with the 9/3 Drought Monitor update, with the area covered by Extreme (D3) conditions reduced to roughly 80% of the zone. A slight reduction in the area covered by Extreme (D3) conditions was noted with the 9/10 update, but a more substantial reduction came with the 9/17 update, where the coverage of Extreme (D3) Drought was reduced to just 20% of the zone. The 9/24 update saw the area of Extreme (D3) Drought reduced further to just 15% coverage. No changes to drought conditions were noted between this point and the end of the month.

The month of September continued to run above normal in terms of temperatures, and below normal in terms of precipitation. However, there were a few periods of heavy rain across the region, particularly around September 12th, and again at the end of the month, which helped to improve drought conditions across the region. A dry end to the month did allow for some worsening drought around the Four Corners.