If you ask just about anyone from another state, Oregon conjures up an image of gray skies, rainy days and damp forests.
But our reputation as a wet state doesn’t quite match what experts are seeing on the ground, as anyone from Oregon’s vast high desert areas will tell you.
Across the state, 90 percent of Oregon is considered to be in “moderate drought” by the U.S Drought Monitor, a mapping tool produced by a number of federal agencies.. Nearly 75 percent of the state is in “severe drought.” That means that 3.6 million of Oregon’s 4.1 million residents are living in some level of drought.
“We had a really dry 2018,” said Kathie Dello, associate director of the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute.
Only one of the 12 basins used to measure water content in snow is where it should be as of Feb. 1, according to the U.S Department of Agriculture.
The Willamette Basin is at 54 percent.
The snowpack in the Cascades isn’t just important for skiers and snowboarders.
The mass of frozen water acts as a slow-release reservoir that feeds the state’s lakes, rivers and streams throughout the summer as precipitation tapers off.
Drier and hotter summers are projected to become more common as Oregon’s climate continues to change, according to numerous recent reports.
Below you’ll find each county, roughly from driest to wettest, along with graphics showing how long drought conditions have persisted in that county.