Drought Information Statement for Southern New England Issued By: NWS Boston/Norton, MA Contact information: box.webmaster@noaa.gov Current Status, Impacts, and Outlook: 03/02/2025 1 U.S. Drought Monitor Latest U.S. Drought Monitor Map National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA D2 Severe Drought West/Central MA Western CT D1 Moderate Drought Eastern MA and RI D0 Abnormally Dry Extreme western MA, southeast MA, Cape/Islands Recent Change in Drought Intensity 1-Week Drought Monitor Class Change National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Drought Worsened: No degradation Drought Improved: No improvements Observed Precipitation National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways 30 day rainfall accumulations ranging from 2 to 5 inches Eastern MA and northern RI have received 100-120 percent of normal rainfall over the last 30 days Western MA, southern RI, southeastern MA, and the Cape/Islands have received 60 to 100 percent of normal rainfall over the last 30 days 3 Month Departures and Percent of Normal National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways 90 day precipitation departures ranging from 1.5 to 4.5 inches below normal across western MA, southern RI, southeast MA, and Cape/Islands Positive departures across portions of eastern MA and most of RI Southern New England ranging from 40 to 100 percent of normal over the last 90 days with greatest deficits across western MA/CT Observed Temperature National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Averages temperatures ranging from 2 to 4 degrees below normal over the last 30 days Summary of Impacts National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Hydrologic Impacts Streamflow values ranging from much below normal to normal across southern New England Groundwater levels are substantially below normal across interior MA, northern RI, and CT. Groundwater ranging from below normal to above normal across the rest of RI, southeast MA, and The Cape/Islands Agricultural Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Fire Hazard Impacts None at this time State Drought Declarations On February 7th, MA raised the Central and Northeast MA regions to a Level – 3 Critical Drought. The Southeast, Cape and Islands regions have been elevated to a Level – 2 Significant Drought. The Connecticut River Valley and Western regions still have their previous statuses: Level 2 – Significant and Level – 1 Mild Drought. Visit https://www.mass.gov/info-details/drought-status for more information CT declared a Stage 2 Drought Advisory for all of CT on November 9th which remains in effect. RI issued a statewide Drought Advisory on December 4th which remains in effect. Details can be found in this press release. Mitigation actions Please refer to your municipality and/or water provider for mitigation information. Hydrologic Conditions National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways 7 day streamflow levels ranging from below to much below normal for most of southern New England 7-Day Streamflow Percentile Agricultural Impacts National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Most of MA ranging from PDSI between -1 and -2.9 highlighting continued longer term dryness in the state Most of RI still considered to be in the normal range (-0.9 to 1.9) This product does not capture short-term dry trends and changes slowly from week to week Palmer Drought Severity Index Fire Hazard Impacts National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Wildland fire potential above normal across all of southern New England for November Seven Day Precipitation Forecast National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Next 7 days: 0.75 to 1.5 inches of liquid precipitation possible over next 7 days All forecast precipitation is associated with a robust low-pressure system forecast to move through the region during the middle of next week 6-10 Day Outlook Temperature and Precipitation Outlook National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Leaning below normal temperatures for days 6 through 10 (03/07-03/11) Leaning near normal precipitation for days 6 through 10 (03/07-03/11) Possible Impact Precipitation deficits may improve or worsen depending on the amount of precipitation received Image Captions: Left - Climate Prediction Center 6-10 Day Temperature Outlook. Right - Climate Prediction Center 6-10 Day Precipitation Outlook. Valid March 7-11, 2025. 8-14 Day Outlook Temperature and Precipitation Outlook National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Leaning above normal temperatures for days 8-14 (03/09-03/15) Leaning near to above normal precipitation for days 8-14 (03/09-03/15) Possible Impact Precipitation deficits and drought conditions may improve with substantial precipitation Image Captions: Left - Climate Prediction Center 8-14 Day Temperature Outlook. Right - Climate Prediction Center 8-14 Day Precipitation Outlook. Valid March 9-15 2025 Weeks 3-4 Outlook Temperature and Precipitation Outlook National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Likely above normal temperatures and leaning near normal precipitation for the second half of March Possible Impact Above normal precipitation may help improve rain/groundwater deficits Image Captions: Left - Climate Prediction Center Weeks 3-4 Temperature Outlook. Right - Climate Prediction Center Weeks 3-4 Precipitation Outlook. Valid March 15-28 2025 Seasonal Climate Outlook Seasonal Temperature and Precipitation Outlook National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways Higher chances for above above normal average temperatures for the Northeast between April-June Equal chances for above/below normal precipitation between April-June Image Captions: Left - Climate Prediction Center Seasonal Temperature Outlook. Right - Climate Prediction Center Seasonal Precipitation Outlook. Valid 04 to 06 2025. Drought Outlook National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Main Takeaways 1 month outlook calls for drought persisting through the end of March for CT and south/central MA 1 month outlook calls for improvements or drought removal for the northern half of MA by the end of March More Information National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA Connecticut Connecticut Drought Information Center Massachusetts Massachusetts Drought Management Task Force Rhode Island Rhode Island Water Resources Board