Thanks to one of the wettest springs in Georgia’s history, the drought that has gripped the state for three years has ended.
March through May was the second wettest spring out of the past 115 in Georgia, according to state climatologist David Stooksbury, who is also a faculty member in UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The vast majority of the state has been climatological drought-free since March. The exceptions have been the Lake Lanier and Lake Hartwell basins. Conditions in these basins have continued to improve over the past few months.
Proper drought management requires a period of recharge of the hydrologic systems after the end of the climatological drought.
Soil moisture and stream flows across the state were normal to much above normal for the middle of June.
With the end of the drought, the entire state has returned to the non-drought outdoor watering schedule. This means that odd number addresses may use outdoor water on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Even number addresses may use outdoor water on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
