Federal data show drought conditions in Nevada are worsening, with 1.1 million Nevadans living in drought-stricken areas, a figure which has increased by more than 85% just over the last week.

AccuWeather data show Nevada has experienced the ninth-driest March on record and the state has seen about an inch and a half less rain from January to March than normal.

Peter Gleick, cofounder of the Pacific Institute in Oakland, California, said the snowpack in the mountains is very low.

"There's been almost no snow in the West and what we have had melted earlier," Gleick pointed out. "We get more runoff in the winter, more flooding. We get less runoff in the spring and the summer when we really want it for agriculture and other uses."

Gleick predicted if the same conditions persist, reservoirs will be significantly depleted over the next few years. The federal Drought Monitor shows extreme drought in the northwest part of Elko County and severe drought in the rest of Elko County and much of Lander, Eureka, White Pine and Northeast Humboldt counties. All other Nevada counties are experiencing moderate drought or abnormally dry conditions.

Shel Winkley, senior engagement specialist and meteorologist at Climate Central, said climate change is worsening drought, which leads to higher fire danger.

"We can put that fingerprint of climate change on extreme temperatures that has helped to amplify that fire weather," Winkley explained. "That wildfire smoke tends to get caught up in the jet stream and can cause air quality issues thousands of miles away from where those fires are."

AccuWeather predicted in 2026, 65,000 to 80,000 wildfires will burn about 5.5 million to 8 million acres across the U.S., which is in line with the historical average.

Source: Public News Service