Visualizing California’s Drought Conditions (2000–2025)

California’s Historical Drought Conditions

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

While drought is a common occurrence in California that can last for multiple years, the frequency of severe droughts has been increasing in recent years as a result of climate change.

Prolonged droughts also intensify wildfire risks by drying vegetation, as seen in the recent Los Angeles wildfires, where arid conditions have exacerbated the spread and destruction caused by the flames.

This visualization shows California’s drought conditions from January 2000 to Jan. 7, 2025 by share of land area experiencing drought.

The data comes from the U.S. Drought Monitor, created by the National Integrated Drought Information System of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Drought Mitigation Center.

Extreme Droughts on the Rise in California

Below, we show California’s historical drought conditions on a quarterly basis with data from January 2000 to Jan. 7, 2025.

Percentages shown express the share of the state’s area that meets particular conditions:

California is no stranger to droughts, with multi-year dry spells being a natural feature of its climate. However, climate change has driven a notable increase in the intensity and frequency of these severe drought events.

Severe droughts in California have widespread impacts, including inadequate grazing land, year-round fire seasons with high intensity and large spatial extent, water shortages, and poor water quality.

In extreme cases, agriculture collapses, wildlife suffers, hydropower is restricted, air quality deteriorates, and greenhouse gas emissions rise due to reduced clean energy production.

Droughts’ disruption of water supplies and agriculture also causes significant economic losses, job cuts, and reduced crop production.

In 2021, the drought led to statewide costs of $1.7 billion and over 14,000 job losses, with many of these impacts concentrated in the Central Valley.

This escalating pattern not only threatens water supplies but also creates the ideal conditions for more frequent and destructive wildfires across the state. These prolonged dry periods create the perfect conditions for wildfires by turning parched vegetation into highly flammable fuel.

The current Los Angeles wildfires that began on January 7, have been fueled by a combination of severe drought conditions and powerful Santa Ana winds.

Measuring Drought

The U.S Drought Monitor uses a five-category system to measure drought. Here are the following categories, and some their specific impacts to the state of California.

• D0 – Abnormally Dry: Soil is dry, irrigation delivery begins early, dryland crop germination is stunted, active fire season begin, winter resort visitation is low, snowpack is minimal.
• D1 – Moderate Drought: Dryland pasture growth is stunted, producers give supplemental feed to cattle, landscaping and gardens need irrigation earlier, wildlife patterns begin to change, stock ponds and creeks are lower than usual.
• D2 – Severe Drought: Grazing land is inadequate, producers increase water efficiency methods and drought-resistant crops, fire season is longer, with high burn intensity, dry fuels, and large fire spatial extent, river flows decrease, reservoir levels are low, and banks are exposed.
• D3 – Extreme Drought: Little pasture remains, federal water is not adequate to meet irrigation contracts, dairy operations close, fire season lasts year-round, burn bans are implemented, low river levels impede fish migration and cause lower survival rates, wildlife encroach on developed area, water sanitation is a concern, surface water is nearly dry, flows are very low, water theft occurs, hydropower is restricted.
• D4 – Exceptional Drought: Fields are left fallow, vegetable yields are low, fire season is very costly, number of fires and area burned are extensive, forest mortality is high, wildlife death is widespread, agriculture unemployment is high, food aid is needed, poor air quality affects health, greenhouse gas emissions increase as hydropower production decreases, water shortages are widespread, surface water is depleted, water prices are extremely high, water quality is poor.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

To learn more about the current Los Angeles wildfires, check out this graphic that visualizes the current wildfires as of Jan. 10, 2025.