Drought Unfolding As 'Unprecedented' Planetary-Scale Emergency

Drought is starting to unfold as an unprecedented planetary-scale emergency, the United Nations has warned. A new Global Drought Snapshot report released by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) at COP28 has warned that drought is becoming a silent killer as climate change worsens. It warns that it is claiming more lives, causing economic loss, and seriously affecting some areas of society, than ever before. "Unlike other disasters that attract media attention, droughts happen silently, often going unnoticed and failing to provoke an immediate public and political response. This silent devastation perpetuates a cycle of neglect, leaving affected populations to bear the burden in isolation," UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw said in a press release. "The Global Drought Snapshot report speaks volumes about the urgency of this crisis and building global resilience to it. With the frequency and severity of drought events increasing, as reservoir levels dwindle and crop yields decline, as we continue to lose biological diversity and famines spread, transformational change is needed. We hope this publication serves as a wake-up call."

The report shows data highlighting how drought conditions are severely affecting areas of the globe. Around 5 percent of the United States is suffering from severe to extreme drought, the report notes. The Western U.S. has suffered from severe drought in recent years. Extremely dry conditions, paired with an over-consumption of water, is causing a water crisis in the area. "While generally the West Coast and central U.S. are most affected by drought, states from the Great Plains to the West Coast are regularly affected by some drought," Daniel Tsegai, program officer at the global policy advocacy and regional cooperation unit at the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, told Newsweek. "In this area, Oregon, California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas all have parts in extreme or exceptional drought. Outside of the West, much of the Northeast is in drought. Drought has also developed recently in western Pennsylvania. Western Iowa into South Dakota and Nebraska has been one of the driest areas in the U.S. compared to their averages, with a sizable area in extreme drought. Three states are found in the most vulnerable category, namely Oklahoma, Montana, and Iowa. Oklahoma is ranked as the most drought-vulnerable state in the country... This result is mainly attributable to limited adaptive capacity, including an outdated drought plan and limited irrigation possibilities, despite significant agricultural activities." It's not just the U.S. that is affected—the report warns that countries all over the globe are suffering, making it an unprecedented threat as climate change worsens. Around 170 million people are expected to be affected by severe drought conditions if global temperatures continue to rise. This is 50 million more than expected. Europe saw its hottest summer on record in 2022, and 15 to 20 percent of China's population has suffered moderate to severe droughts over the last 100 years. Drought is also causing famines in East Africa, which has been suffering a drought for years. It is estimated that 23 million living in the Horn of Africa are "severely food insecure." "No country is immune to drought. While the impacts of drought hit the poorest countries hardest, high-income countries will also continue to feel the impacts—as we have seen in the United U.S., Australia, and Europe," Tsegai said. "If drought continues worsening at this level, we will see more food insecurity, forced migration, and conflicts over dwindling resources, dwindling reservoir levels to declining crop yields, loss of biological diversity." Warmer global temperatures cause more evaporation, meaning drought is more likely. Climate change also makes weather patterns less predictable, meaning there is less precipitation in general. The report highlights several ways that countries across the globe can prepare and mitigate the effects of drought. It recommends investing in drought-resistant crops, and efficient irrigation methods to ensure that agriculture is not severely affected.

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Effective water management is also key—water supply systems must be sustainable and conservation measures must be adopted in areas with a shortage. "Several countries already experience climate-change-induced famine," the report states. "Forced migration surges globally; violent water conflicts are on the rise; the ecological base that enables all life on earth is eroding more quickly than at any time in known human history. We have no alternative to moving forward in a way that respects the planet's boundaries and the interdependencies of all forms of life. We need to reach binding global agreements for proactive measures that are to be taken by nations to curtail the spells of drought." Update: This article was updated to include quotes from Daniel Tsegai