Drought in Lower Chama River Valley, New Mexico

Drought conditions for March mimicked that of February. Sadly there was no improvement in conditions across the northern two-thirds of New Mexico but overall drought severity did not worsen.

Precipitation was well-below normal areawide. Some areas in the southwest along with the northern mountains averaged 50-75% of normal while most other areas were only 10-25% of normal for the month. The eastern plains continued to experience only around 10% of normal precipitation values, and the high plains of eastern New Mexico continue to be in the most severe category of drought in the state. March experienced numerous wind events with only one notable precipitation event, which occurred over the northern high terrain. Isolated severe weather mid-way through the month brought some precipitation to parts of southeast New Mexico, but wind was the main impact.

Severe drought (D2) continued across most of the area during March. D2 conditions were present in the northwest corner of the state as well as from the Sangre de Cristo range in the north to the Chuska Mountains in the west and extending south to the southwest mountains. During the first two weeks of March, severe drought conditions persisted in the same general areas as in January and February, but during the second half of the month, there was a drastic increase in extreme drought (D3) conditions. D3 conditions expanded from being confined mostly to the eastern half of the state westward to near Gallup and to the southern extent of the area. Exceptional drought (D4) conditions also expanded during the month. D4 continued in portions of Union and Roosevelt counties and began to develop in San Miguel County, extending into Guadalupe and Mora counties. The San Francisco River Valley zone in the southwest continued to remain just below D2 drought status. Also, portions of the Far Northwest Highlands along the Colorado New Mexico border was unchanged for the month.