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Essay on Drought

List of essays on drought, essay on drought – short essay for kids and children (essay 1 – 100 words), essay on drought – 10 lines on drought written in english (essay 2 – 250 words), essay on drought – causes, effects and measures (essay 3 – 350 words), essay on drought (essay 4 – 400 words), essay on drought  – in india (essay 5 – 500 words), essay on drought – for school students (class 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 standard) (essay 6 – 600 words), essay on drought – for college and university students (essay 7 – 750 words), essay on drought – long essay on drought (essay 8 – 1000 words).

Drought is a disaster which affects many regions of India every year. A natural disaster which leads to a shortage of water for drinking, agriculture and other practices is called a drought. However, we are yet to come up with some concrete measure in order to avoid this adverse situation through which the people have to go through each year.

Audience: The below given essays are exclusively written for school students (Class 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 Standard) and college students.

Drought is a severe condition in which some regions face a heavy shortage of water. There are some countries which are nowadays struggling with an insufficient amount of water. This situation occurs due to factors like climate change, deforestation or global warming.

In some areas, starvation as a result of drought, leads to the death of several people. Drought also affect the production of crops, causes forest fires and leads to insufficient electricity production.

It is important to adopt some solutions to tackle this issue. We can use methods like rainwater harvesting, seawater desalination or grow more plants and trees. The whole world is familiar with the misuse of water resources which needs to be overcome in order to prevent droughts.

The prolonged absence of rain or the lack of natural sources of water can bring about a drought. This natural phenomenon has been occurring all through the history of mankind and it has shaped many civilizations in the past. Droughts are something that people fear and it is also something that can be brought about by our actions towards our surrounding. One is compelled by practical reason to consider what actions can bring about potentially cataclysmic events like droughts and since I am still a student there is a lot I can do, further on as I go through life, to contribute to reasonable water usage.

The earth has its own principle of functioning and it changes our surrounding often and without warning, that’s why droughts sometimes happen even though we do nothing, in particular, to make them come about. When such events occur, people use different techniques to find alternative sources of water. The best we can do in such situations is to find tools that we can use to help us predict what the movement of water will be, or how much rain will fall.

On the other hand, we tend to misuse our natural resources and to drain them. That is why the recent decades have seen many rivers dry out due to our extensive agricultural needs. The lack of water brought about droughts in many regions that were previously famed for their natural wealth. Thankfully, people are becoming aware of how they are behaving and through this awareness, we are developing new methods for water use and distribution, it is up to us to implement those changes and make fear of the great drought a thing of the past.

“Drought” which results from the shortage of water due to lack of rainfall. The situation is challenging and can prove to be catastrophic for those living in the drought-affected areas.

Causes of Drought:

The Marathwada region of Maharashtra suffers from “drought” condition every year. There are various factors responsible for causing a “drought” like situation.

Some of these are discussed below:

1. Deforestation:

The main cause of “drought” is deforestation, which leads to a shortage of rainfall. Trees and shrubs hold the ground water, prevent it from evaporation and attracts rainfall. Deforestation is carried out to clear the land for farming, industrialization and urbanization. The soil in these areas loses its capacity to hold water, which also leads to “drought” condition. The devastating flood in the beautiful state of Kerala has become one of the biggest catastrophe in recent times.

2. Diminishing Water Bodies:

The usage of water bodies like rivers and lakes is done on a huge scale. During scorching summers these rivers and lakes are dried which result in dreadful “droughts”. Due to extreme climatic condition and various human activities, the water in these water bodies dries down which leads to “drought”. Wells are also a main sources of water in various regions in the country. Villages and towns in the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat are facing life threatening situation where water in the wells has dried up. People in these villages stand in long queues to purchase water for drinking and daily needs.

Effects of Drought:

The farming sector in India is the most vulnerable to the climatic condition. Most of the agriculture in India is dependent on rainfall and ground water. “Drought” like situation has tremendously affected the farming sector and animal husbandry in India. The scorching sun sucks the ground water and becomes fatal to the cattle.

Measures to Prevent Drought:

Droughts can be prevented by –

i. Planting more trees.

ii. Implementing water conservation techniques.

iii. Reducing wastage of water and water pollution.

Conclusion:

Although initiatives like the “Paani Foundation” are being taken to mitigate “drought” condition in India but not much is done till date. As a responsible citizen we must contribute to the efforts taken to combat “drought” condition so that our future generations will not face such crisis.

The problem of drought is very severe and there are plenty of different provinces in India which are being largely impacted. It is really important for people at large to understand that the time calls for taking some strict measures at the earliest.

We have exploited mother earth in a ruthless manner and owing to the anthropogenic exploitation; the natural balance of the ecosystem has been disturbed. This in turn has led to plenty of troubles which include drought.

Drought – Getting Familiar:

Drought mainly refers to the condition wherein the area receives almost negligible to nil rainfall making it a dry period. This can be really deadly for the farmers as most of the harvest won’t ripen and it has several adverse consequences. Granted there are artificial methods of irrigation and the option of water supply but not all farmers have access to these facilities. This infers that drought ends up wrecking havoc on their finances and the families of the farmers sometimes even end up committing suicide or dying because of starvation.

Remedial Measures:

This brings us to the question as to what can be done to remedy the situation of drought. The answerer lies in helping the environment. The environment has the power to heal itself, but we need to be supportive in our approach. It is extremely important to understand the grave concerns and the bleak future that awaits us.

Drought isn’t the only calamity which we are facing. The increased frequency of earthquakes, flash floods, depleting ice cover, striking change in climates are all symbolic of the piteous condition of our environment. Until and unless, we manage to educate the masses and enlighten them about the need to have a green cover and preserve the environment, the frequency of drought and other calamities will continue to be on the rise. More and more measures need to be taken and the ruthless exploitation of the environment needs to stop right away.

We know that it is easier said than done but the change needs to start from somewhere. You should make it a point to understand the possible areas wherein you can bring a change. Try by curtailing the cutting down of trees even if it is for development purpose. Use measures to combat pollution and stop the use of non bio-degradable products. It is the collective efforts which will end up making a huge difference.

Drought is a natural calamity which is an impending sign of the dark future which this planet might be enveloped in if we do not take the right action now!

What is a drought? As per the given definitions, it is a natural disaster resulting in scarcity of water for drinking, agriculture and industrial purposes. But, given the current scenario, is it actually a natural disaster. This may not be completely true as human activities over a period of time have resulted in altering of nature’s natural phenomenon and today we see droughts occurring at places which were once abundant with water resources. Hence there is a strong need to understand the causes of drought and what can be done to prevent or minimize it.

Drought Prone Regions in India:

Some states of India have been declared as drought-prone due to the frequent occurrence of drought year after year in these states. These states are Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra and Northern Karnataka. Apart from these many regions, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and parts of other states are also affected by drought every year.

India is a land which is dependent on monsoon rainfall for adequacy of water. Hence inadequate rainfall is considered as the major reason for drought in most parts of the country. However, this is again a subject of debate as to why there has been insufficient rainfall for quite some years now. Another reason is the drip in the water table and consequently less water vapour in the atmosphere which is responsible for the formation of clouds.

Again global warming has led to changes in the normal climatic conditions and with the increase in temperatures; there has been a significant effect on the monsoon season in India as well. Moreover, high sea temperatures have led to the El Nino effect taking place which has further affected the onset of monsoon season. All these factors combined with improper agricultural practices and increase in pollution levels have contributed to the reduction in the monsoon rainfall which has led to drought each year in many areas in India.

What should be done?

There is an urgent need to have measures in place in order to save the regions of India from drought. One of the major plans of the Government in this regard is the linking of rivers. If we are able to link the rivers we can divert excess rivers from region to the drought-affected areas and save them from this disaster. Another important measure is to have proper irrigation methods in place so as to utilize water only as much as it is required. Moreover, extracting of water through tube wells and other sources should be checked into as this leads to drip in the water table which triggers the onset of drought.

Last, but not least, it is not the responsibility of the government alone to have measures in place to prevent regions from being affected by drought, we all should ensure that we save water to the maximum and follow the rules as laid down by the Government. We should do rainwater harvesting as well so that we store the water provided to us by nature which shall be helpful in difficult times. A collective effort by all can surely be helpful in minimizing if not preventing the situation as adverse as drought.

Introduction:

Drought is a miserable condition caused due to lack of water in a particular region or country or territory for a long period of time. Drought is a natural calamity in which there is scarcity of water everywhere even for the basic needs. People in many countries suffer due to drought and many lose their lives since lack of water leads to lack of food. The impact of drought is very horrible and sometimes it becomes difficult for the affected country to recover to a normal state.

The main reason for drought to occur is the absence of rain. When the normally falling rain fails for a few months then there arises water scarcity. Wells become dry and people and other living beings start to move from one place to another in search of water.

Although lack of rainfall is the main cause for drought , there are also other causes that lead to such a condition.

The various causes of drought are:

Now-a-days people are mis-treating the environment. Why there is no rain? What causes rain? Everyone should ask these questions to themselves to know the real cause of drought. Trees are the main source of rainfall. When we cut trees for constructing buildings, we are not only removing the vegetation and greenery but also removing the main source of rainfall from the Earth.

2. Draining of Surface Water:

Rivers, lakes, ponds are the natural ways by which water is stored in the Earth. Activities like excessive irrigation, excessive use of water for industrial purposes drains the surface water from these natural reservoirs and cause a condition known as drought. Rise in temperature due to global warming is also a cause for draining of water.

Impacts of Drought:

The impact caused by drought is so huge that many countries that faces drought year on year still remains as under-developed countries. The day-to-day activities of the people get stopped. The severity of drought can even take many lives. Let us look into some of the major impacts:

1. Heavy Loss to Farmers:

Agriculture is the source of living for the farmers. Periodic rainfall and the availability of ground water is very much important for agriculture. Drought impacts farmers the most because if there is no rainfall, agriculture fails. There is no yield, plants die, livestock suffers and farmers end up with no income. They get debts to try other ways and make their living but when everything goes out of control, they have no other way than to end their lives. Severe droughts lead to increase in the number of farmer suicides.

2. Loss of Wildlife:

It is during the time of drought, forest fires start occurring. Since everything is dry, fire catches up very easily. The life of wild animals is at huge risk; some get burnt in the forest fires and some lose their habitat and have to move to some other place.

3. Soil Degradation:

Continuous drought will make the soil lose its moisture and fertility. We can see at many places where there are no rains, the lands will have cracks on them. Some areas regain their fertile soil after many years of rain but some totally lose their nature to yield crops.

4. Safety is at Risk:

The scarcity of food leads to increase in prices of commodities. As the droughts might have taken the employment of some, no income would push people to commit crimes such as theft.

There are some ways that people can try to manage drought. Few important ones are listed below: –

People can use rain water harvesting method to save and store rain water and use it at emergency times like drought.

Waste water must be collected, purified and re-used. The water thus stored can be used for watering plants and can be used for irrigation also.

Afforestation techniques can be adopted.

Drought has huge consequences but it is not the end. If everyone of us contribute their share in preserving the environment, then many hazards like drought can be managed very easily.

Drought is a natural disaster that occurs in some regions of the globe. Some regions are more prone to drought while other regions are not. In India, drought has been experienced and a lot of people have died. Drought causes death of humans, animals and plants due to the adverse conditions that are harsh to the ecosystem and limits survival. In disaster management, drought is considered among the threats to human and animal life. Drought is defined as a prolonged period of inadequate water and food. The periods of drought vary but lack of water for over two weeks is considered drought.

During drought, the ecosystem is negatively affected that is why agriculture is compromised and it results in lack of food. The effects of drought are both to the animate and inanimate objects in the environment. Drought is handled by disaster management teams by provision of water and food to the affected people and prevention of further effects like fires on dry vegetation. Drought can occur naturally due to dry seasons or can result from human activities that causes a change in climate.

Lack of rainfall for long periods of time results in drought. Rain formation or precipitation processes require moisture accumulation in the atmosphere or on the ground as ice. Sunshine and winds can affect the precipitation processes as it affects the formation of water.

Another cue of drought is the natural dry seasons whereby low humidity is experienced. During the dry season, water sources dry up due to high temperatures that increase vaporization. In the high demand for vapor, extreme measures like drawing water from plants is reached which results in death of those plants.

Human activities could also result in drought. Agriculture and human settlements result in deforestation. Deforestations predispose the environment to erosion of soil and vegetation destruction. The lack of vegetation and forests causes decreased rainfall in the region and could cause drought occurrence.

Climatic changes also result in drought. Human activities like emission of greenhouse gases to the environment has caused global warming. In global warming, climate change is experienced such that the temperatures on the surface of the earth are raised. Raised temperatures result in increased vaporization and depletion of water from rivers, boreholes. Effects of global warming have been determined to be either extremes of rainfall or drought.

Consequences of Drought:

Drought causes adverse effect on the ecosystem. Interruption and loss of biodiversity is experienced during drought because animals of several species die due to lack of water and food. Also, the living things like trees and vegetation die. Diseases also arise during seasons of drought that affect living things and cause death. Extinction of rare species is common during seasons of drought.

The losses experienced in the economy during drought are substantial. Drought causes death and deterioration of plants thus decreasing the agricultural economical activities. There will be inflation of food production costs and diminished water economic activities like tourism and energy production.

Health of both animals and plants is greatly affected by drought. Drought effects cause diseases like dehydration and malnutrition that are debilitating to both humans and plants. Extreme hunger for humans and animals cause death.

Drought Management:

Once drought has occurred, the protection of people and animals should be done. In disaster management, the focus is on mitigating the consequences and providing life sustenance to those affected by the disaster. In agriculture, methods of irrigation and crop rotation have been implemented in arid areas so as to mitigate the consequences of drought. Water harvesting is also essential in preparation for drought. In water harvesting, construction of dams and boreholes in arid areas has been helpful during seasons of drought.

Erosion is minimized through crop rotation. Water conservation methods like recycling and outdoor use restrictions have been employed in arid areas.

In conclusion, drought is a natural disaster whose effects are adverse and cause loss of life. The management of drought generally involves the water conservation, storage and expansion of sources of water. The consequences of drought are deleterious and destruct the ecosystem and loss of biodiversity.

In order to reduce the consequences of drought, several measures have been put in place. Disaster management teams have conducted projects for water conservation for use during drought like by constructing dams. Mitigating the consequences of drought also involved the inhibition of causes of drought. Mitigation of erosion through planting enough vegetation to prevent erosion goes a long way in preventing drought. Human activities should also be controlled.

Drought can simply be defined as a form of natural disaster that is a result of the precipitation in a particular region below average which results in prolonged periods of water supply shortage, be it ground water, surface water or rainfall water. Droughts can go on for a lot of months or even years; it is most times declared and claimed after about just 15 days.

The agriculture and ecosystem of a particular region can be substantially impacted by drought and this can lead to a great deal of harm on the economy of the region. It has been discovered that the probability of a drought taking place and bush fires occurring is increased significantly by the dry seasons annually. Drought conditions are significantly worsened by long heat periods and this is as a result of the hastened evaporation of vapours of water.

There are a lot of species of plants like the Cactaceae family that have adaptations for the tolerance of drought (like a reduce area of leaf and cuticles that are waxy to help improve their drought tolerance ability). There are other species of plants that survive periods of droughts as seeds that are buried.

Grasslands and Deserts are examples of arid biomes that are produced by droughts that are semi-permanent. Humanitarian crisis and mass migrations are caused by prolonged droughts. Majority of ecosystems that are arid have very low productivity. The world experienced its longest period of drought in Atacama Desert of Chile and the drought lasted for about 400 years.

There are a lot of causes of drought.

A few out of the many causes will be discussed below:

1. Climate Changes:

Droughts are triggered by all the various activities that result in climate change globally and this can have a very strong effect on agriculture all over the world most especially in countries that are developing. Global warming and climate change will bring about an imbalance in the ecosystem.

There is going to be erosion and flooding in some regions and drought in other regions. Therefore, it is quite obvious that climate change and global are one of the leading causes of drought in the world today.

2. Deficiency in Precipitation:

Precipitation is produced through mechanisms including orographic rainfall, strati-form rainfall and convective rainfall. The processes of convective rainfall involve vertical motions that are strong and can lead to the atmosphere overturning in that particular location in about an hour, causing heavy precipitation. The processes of stratiform precipitation involve upward motions that are weaker, a little bit less intense and can last a duration that is longer.

We can divide precipitation into about three categories; this is based on if it falls in form of liquid water, water in liquid form that freezes when it comes in contact with a surface and ice. Droughts mainly occur in areas that the normal rainfall levels are quite low. If the factors in the region do not help the volume of precipitation in a way that they can get to the surface in time, drought occurs. Drought can also be triggered through a very high reflected sunlight level.

3. Dry Season:

In the tropic regions, we have distinct dry and wet seasons and this is as a result of the Monsoon trough. The occurrence of drought is greatly increased during dry seasons, this season is known by the very low humidity and rivers and watering holes drying up. As a result of the inadequacy of watering holes and rivers, a lot of animals that graze migrate because of the absence of water and move to areas that are more fertile. Some of the animals that do this include wildebeest, elephants, zebra and cattle.

As a result of the absence of water, bushfires are very common during this season. Because of the increased temperature, the water vapour tend to become more energetic, to increase the relative humidity to 100%, required water vapour is more. When it is warm, the rate of vegetable and fruit production is increased and this causes an increase in transpiration and evaporation from plants leading to drought conditions that are worse.

Types of Drought :

With the persistence of drought, all of the various conditions that surround it worsen gradually and the effect on the region increases gradually.

There are three major types of droughts:

i. Meteorological drought is a type of drought that occurs anytime we have a prolonged period of below average rainfall or precipitation. It is common for meteorological drought to precede other types of drought.

ii. Agricultural drought is a type of drought that affects the ecology and production of crops in a particular region. Agricultural drought can also happen independently as a result of a change in the levels of precipitation when erosion and soil conditions that are triggered by agricultural endeavours that are poorly planned lead to a drop in the amount of water that is available for crop use. However, traditional droughts are caused by a period of precipitation that is below average.

iii. Hydrological drought is a type of drought that occurs when the available water reserves in sources like reservoirs, lakes and aquifers drop below average. Hydrological drought takes a lot of time to manifest since it deals with water that has been stored and is used and not replenished.

The effects of water shortages can be grouped into three namely:

i. Social effects

ii. Economic effects

iii. Environmental effects

Droughts can also cause wars, wildfires, social unrest, and drop in electricity production, mass migration, hunger, famine and so many more.

Prevention Measures:

Prevention measures include:

i. Building of Dams

ii. Cloud seeding

iii. Desalination

iv. Proper Drought monitoring

v. Proper Land use

vi. Rainwater harvesting

vii. Restriction of water use outdoors

viii. Use of Recycled water

Drought can be very detrimental to the ecosystem and can also have a lot of effects. It is therefore extremely necessary that we do our possible best to battle drought and try to employ methods of drought relief, mitigation methods to prevent drought.

Disaster , Drought , Natural Disasters

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Essay on Drought

Students are often asked to write an essay on Drought in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Drought

Understanding drought.

Drought is a natural event that happens when an area gets less rain than normal. It can last for months or even years.

Causes of Drought

Droughts often occur due to lack of rain. Sometimes, high temperatures can also cause drought by making water evaporate from soil and plants.

Effects of Drought

Drought can make it hard for plants and animals to survive. It can also lead to water shortages for people. In severe cases, drought can cause famine.

Dealing with Drought

People can deal with drought by conserving water, using it wisely, and planning for dry periods.

Also check:

• Paragraph on Drought

250 Words Essay on Drought

Introduction.

Drought is a natural disaster characterized by a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water. It is a complex phenomenon that can have serious ecological, social, and economic impacts.

Droughts are primarily caused by irregularities in global weather patterns. Climate change has been identified as a significant factor, with increasing global temperatures leading to changes in rainfall patterns and increased evaporation rates. Human activities, such as deforestation and overuse of water resources, can also exacerbate drought conditions.

Impacts of Drought

Drought can have severe consequences for both the environment and human societies. It can lead to crop failure, livestock death, and water shortages, impacting food production and access to clean water. This can consequently lead to malnutrition, disease, and death, particularly in vulnerable populations. Economically, droughts can result in increased prices and job losses in agricultural sectors.

Drought Mitigation

Mitigation strategies for drought include water conservation, efficient irrigation techniques, and the development of drought-resistant crops. Additionally, improving climate forecasting can help societies prepare for and manage drought conditions. Policymakers must also prioritize sustainable water management to ensure that water resources are used efficiently and equitably.

Drought is a pressing global issue that requires concerted efforts to mitigate its impacts. By understanding its causes and consequences, we can develop effective strategies to manage drought and reduce its harmful effects on society and the environment.

500 Words Essay on Drought

Drought, a natural disaster characterized by a prolonged period of insufficient rainfall, is a global phenomenon with profound impacts on both human and ecological systems. It is a complex, multi-dimensional issue that involves various aspects of climate, hydrology, and human activities.

Droughts occur when there is an extended period of below-average precipitation. This deficiency of water supply can last for months or even years. Droughts are categorized into three types: meteorological, agricultural, and hydrological. Meteorological droughts are associated with reduced rainfall, agricultural droughts with soil moisture deficits affecting crop production, and hydrological droughts with reduced water availability in streams, reservoirs, and aquifers.

The primary cause of drought is a lack of precipitation over an extended period. This can be due to natural climate variability, such as the El Niño Southern Oscillation, or changes in atmospheric conditions that suppress the formation of clouds and rainfall. Human activities, such as deforestation and overuse of water resources, can also contribute to the occurrence and severity of droughts.

The impacts of drought are far-reaching and can be devastating. They affect the environment, economy, and society. Environmental impacts include reduced water quality, loss of wildlife habitat, and increased risk of wildfires. Economically, drought can lead to crop failure, livestock death, and increased food prices, affecting food security. Social impacts include displacement of people, health issues due to lack of clean water, and increased conflicts over scarce water resources.

Drought Management and Mitigation

Effective drought management requires a proactive approach, focusing on reducing vulnerability and enhancing resilience. Strategies can include improving water infrastructure, implementing water conservation practices, and developing drought-tolerant crops. At the policy level, it involves developing comprehensive drought management plans, early warning systems, and drought risk insurance. Climate change adaptation strategies also play a crucial role in drought mitigation.

Drought is a significant global challenge that requires concerted efforts to mitigate and adapt. While it is a natural phenomenon, human activities have exacerbated its occurrence and impacts. Therefore, understanding drought, its causes, impacts, and management strategies is essential for sustainable development and resilience. As we move forward, it is crucial that we continue to enhance our knowledge and strategies to better manage and mitigate the effects of droughts.

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Drought Essay

500 words essay on drought.

Droughts refer to conditions when particular regions face scarcity of water because of low or no rainfall. It is one of the most prevalent problems in India. A lot of areas in the country get hit by drought every year while others face it occasionally. Moreover, many factors contribute to the problem of drought which includes deforestation, global warming and more. Drought essay will take us through it in detail.

Drought Prone Areas in India

In India, there are a lot of chronic drought-affected regions. They include the West Rajasthan and the Kutchtch regions of Gujarat. The main factor for this is the geographical location of these areas.

Moreover, the monsoon season in this area is also very weak by the time they reach there. In addition, humans degrading the environment also do not help but add to the brutality of this problem.

Other than that, other drought-prone areas are Western Orissa, Rayalsema and Telangana areas of Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, interior Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and more. However, the two states which suffer the most from both floods and drought are Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

As per an estimate, around 70% of cultivable land in India is Drought prone. If we look at the past three years, some areas in Rajasthan have been experiencing very little rains. Thus, it becomes harder for the people in that area.

The most impacted section of the society is the marginal farmers, landless labourers and persons from the economically backward section. In addition, the tribal depending on forest produce also suffer from droughts.

Prevention of Droughts

With droughts, the case is different from tsunamis and cyclones. Meaning to say, we can predict it much in advance. Thus, it gives ample time for the Government authorities to prepare for it in advance and cope with this problem.

The Meteorological Department can easily predict the quantity and duration of rainfall with a fair degree of accuracy. As a result, we can counter the intensity and impact of droughts by a series of preventive as well as curative measures.

First of all, we must promote small scale and cottage industry in order to reduce the dependence on agriculture in drought-prone areas. Further, executing a rainwater harvesting project with community cooperation can help in many areas.

Most importantly, we must increase the forest cover by plantation. Similarly, we can also research arid cultivation technologies to implement them in drought-prone areas.

It is also essential to formulate drought management strategies with the involvement of the communities. Finally, we must also introduce crop insurance schemes so that the farmers do not suffer a great loss.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Conclusion of Drought Essay

To sum it up, drought is a difficult situation with which we have to deal with. When the severity is high, it becomes all the more difficult to manage it. A lot of people get affected because of droughts every year as it reduces human activities. Thus, it is essential to take effective measures to deal with it.

FAQ of Drought Essay

Question 1: What are the effects of drought?

Answer 1: Drought affects the environment in a lot of different ways. We all know that plants and animals depend on water, just like humans. When a drought happens, their food supply shrinks and their habitat can be damaged. As a result, an increase in disease in wild animals happens because of reduced food and water supplies.

Question 2: Why do droughts happen?

Answer 2: Droughts happen when there is not enough rain for a long period of time. It is not like a dry spell, there is so little precipitation (rain, snow, sleet ) that a whole province starts to dry out. Sometimes, a drought can take decades to fully develop.

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Essay on Drought for Students and Children | PDF Download

Essay on Drought for Students and Children – Types, Causes, Prevention Steps: Drought is one of both human and natural made disasters. The main cause to occur drought is the human activities around the area’s environmental conditions. The more damage to the environment the more is the chance of rising to droughts. All the living beings will suffer heavily and even to death due to droughts as similarly, the major part is by human beings. Droughts are a disaster that human beings can’t fight against and only nature has the power to abolish it. Droughts have the power to decide whether there is a need for the existence of living beings are not. Similarly, the essay on drought will contain its types, causes, prevention steps to remove, and much more information.

Short Essay on Drought

Drought is one of the dangerous environmental conditions which damages the quality of life on Earth. It exposes the harmful effect and even it is considered a natural disaster. Drought will usually occur when there is a shortage of any of the essential natural resources in a particular area. These droughts are majorly affecting mankind and all other living beings on the earth. Some countries face drought conditions heavily, due to improper environmental balances. Drought will usually arise with the damage of the nature around the area which leads to hotter climatic conditions and fewer rainfalls. The drought was further divided into three types depending on the shortage of essential natural resources. It damages agricultural cultivation and heavy damage to the lives of farmers. Drought brings up the scarcity of water, food, moisture in the air, and high temperature. Initially, it removes the moisture level from the surroundings, and later on, it eliminates the resources.

Causes to occur droughts are deforestation and a rise in temperatures. As trees are removed it leads to an increase in temperature and ecological imbalances in the areas. As the environment was imbalanced it rises to decrease the rainfalls and hot climatic conditions. Global Warming has the part to bring Drought to the environment. On the other side impact of the drought will be high on living beings on earth. It can abolish food, water and tends to hard financial condition to the people and the country. However, there are some prevention steps like reforestation, using solar energy, and many more to reduce the hot climates and to improve the climate conditions. These steps bring up the rains and necessary moisture conditions for the sustainment of humans and living beings.

Long Essay on Droughts

Drought is a dangerous condition in nature where the scarcity of essential natural resources arises. These conditions are harmful to live beings and mankind where they can lead to death. Drought is nothing but the scarcity of water, food, which are due to climatic conditions. As the lesser rainfalls are seen in the areas which cause the droughts and chance to end of living beings. An example of a drought is the deserts where scarcity arises due to high temperature and less moisture climatic conditions. With increasing global pollution and global warming levels, drought will arise easily.

Types of Droughts

Droughts are further divided into four types namely Meteorological, Hydrological, Agricultural, and Socioeconomic. These all are happening due to the dry weather conditions that dominate in particular areas. As the drought arises it brings up the economical and environmental imbalances in the country or a particular area. There are some areas where the lesser rainfall and humid climatic conditions, there is a chance of observing droughts at a higher rate. People of these specific areas will face problems in their daily routine. Scarcity of essential resources is always present in the area and conditions of people are hard and move to a far distance to get resources.

Metrological drought is the scarcity of cool weather or the continuous dry weather located in a particular area. Hydrological drought happens in areas with less water supply and a decrease in the level of water bodies in the areas. Hydrological droughts occurred after the period of the metrological droughts are observed in the unique area. Agricultural Droughts happen when the crops are affected for any reason. Whereas Socioeconomic drought is observed when the demand and supply ratio of goods is unbalanced.

Causes of Droughts

The causes of droughts are many due to man-made activities and very limited natural activities. But the cause of damage for the droughts are due to humans at a higher rate and these are done every day. Whereas natural disaster occurs once and expose heavy damage. Natural activities like rising in temperature, orbital rotation of the earth, moisture levels in the atmosphere, and many others. Human activities like deforestation, global warming activities, etc. There are some other causes like air circulation, water availability, and some ecological imbalances.

The impact of the drought will be at a higher rate where the life span of human beings will decrease. drought will cut all the chains that are present in the ecosystem. All the living beings and nature will be impacted to a further extent which can remove everything on Planet Earth. However, some solution steps need to follow by human beings to the remove roots of droughts. Reforestation and planting of trees bring up the climatic changes in the environment and make fall the rains. These will develop greenness and remove all the pollution even. Every prevention step needs to follow for the removal of drought from the ecosystem.

Droughts are occurring due to various activities that are involved by human beings. Humans have the intelligence to change the environment in a good path and parallel fulfill their needs of them. Every individual in the ecosystem should feel responsible to follow the prevention steps for the improvement of nature for further decades. Everything is in the hands of human beings because there was the chance to reconstruct the issues less environment and healthy ecosystem.

Conclusion: We believe that the above essay on droughts contains all the information and more useful points to get awareness. These essays will helpful for UPSC aspirants and at competitions & exams for students.

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Drought Essay

The Millenium Drought

For many months now, most of California has been suffering through a drought. Policy makers and residents of California have been strategizing for a plan to stop the drought. The biggest lesson that Californians can learn from this is by looking into the past, specifically in Australia, where The Millennium Drought occurred from 1997 to 2009. During the Millennium Drought in Australia, the economy and the environment were hit the hardest. While small and large scale farmers were only affected in

Drought In California

as possible. California has been experiencing a very severe drought that has cost California millions of dollars in agriculture and manufacturing due to low water. Though their drought is not apocalyptic yet, but it could worsen and become an apocalypse that we should fear. The changes that can come from such a disaster would change the lives of everyone in society. The ways water shortages could come about is multiple ways such as, drought, poor management of water, or political issues. Water corruption

Ausralia Drought

There have been droughts severe droughts around the world infact you have an example. “Australia has just come through a thirteen-year duration of drought it was catastrophic in that country. The way that they delt with it was, believe it or not, was concerving water and rain water harvesting. It wasn’t all the high teck stuff and yet we here in California need a desalinization plant. I mean it does help. But the main strength in what they accomplished in that country of ausralia was the fact that

A Study On The Drought

In this study, we conceptualize drought propagation as a cascading phenomenon that begins with rainfall deficits and proceeds through the hydrological cycle as shown in Fig. 2. As the drought proceeds, its impacts on associated or dependent societal and agro-ecological systems accumulated (or ensues in worst critical or complex condition) as shown in Fig. 3. Consequently, we have elected to use the framework of “diseases burden” to elucidate the cumulative drought effects. According to Begg et al

Australian Drought

In Australia drought has, and can be a serious issue, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology says drought is “Rainfall over a three-month period being in the lowest decile of what has been recorded for that region in the past.” Bureau of Meteorology records show that a fairly impacting drought in Australia around once every eighteen years. There are three types of drought present in Australia, Meteorological drought is the most basic and common, it is a period with less than normal precipitation

Winnemucca's Drought

The Driest Drought of My Life Time What are a few problems in and around Winnemucca, NV and how can they be fixed? Well, Winnemucca, NV is located right smack in the middle the Great Basin Desert. For the past few years the Great Basin Desert has been in a tremendously huge drought. The Humboldt River that used to be full of water year round has dropped dramatically to the point it is almost completely dry for the past few years. Also, this drought has continued for many years; it was only supposed

Drought, is defined by the National Weather Service as “a deficiency in precipitation over an extended period, usually a season or more, resulting in a water shortage causing adverse impacts on vegetation, animals, and/or people.” With the possibility of occurring in any climate, droughts have the potential to be the most devastating natural weather-related disaster in regards to long-term losses in agriculture, economics, and life. These water crises has been combatted with many types of solutions

Drought Problem Essay

environmental problems around the world. These problems such as drought, global warming, and pollution are caused by our actions, mistakes, or just by nature. Out of the various environmental problems, drought is one of the hazard of nature that is happening throughout some parts of the world, especially in California, United States. In general, drought is a “period of dry weather” or “an extended shortage of water” (Jaworski). There are two types of drought definitions: conceptual and operational definitions

Focus On California And Drought

Focus on California and Drought There are many problems with world, but one of the most difficult problems are global warming and droughts. Global warming leads to droughts, among other things, and droughts lead to trouble. Droughts are very problematic, because they can lead to fire hazards, low food cropping, and many other things. Drought is the absents or shortage of water and water is an absolute must have in the world. There are so many problems because of drought and people need to find

The California Drought Problem

The environmental issue to be considered is the water consumption of the state of California and how this consumption has been influenced by the most recent historical drought from 2011 to 2016. Conditions are improving, but unfortunately, California is not completely in the clear (Miller, 2017). The main cause of the drought cannot be determined (Valentine, 2015), but what is known is that a mass of warm water in the Pacific Ocean has prevented rainfall from reaching the state (Klusinske, 2015)

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The History of Drought in Cape Town Essay (Critical Writing)

History of the drought, effect on luxury hospitality and tourism, media coverage, reasons for covering the topic, water saving measures, conclusions.

Cape Town is a coastal city in South Africa. With a population of 433,688, it is one of the most populated places in the country (DeyàTortella and Tirado 2011. This paper reviews the literature on the history of the drought, causes, and the effect on tourism.

The Western Cape Water Supply System supplies water to the city through six dams (Center for Responsible Travel 2016, Machnik 2013). About 63% of the water is used for domestic and industrial use, and the rest for agriculture and other uses (The Straits Times 2013, Beham 2018, Anonymous 2017). Since the past few years, the western cape region has seen drought-like situations, with rains scant rainfall for the past three years, and water levels at critically low levels (Gosling 2018, Bellis 2018). Population has increased in the city by 69% in the past decade, and people continue to draw more water through illegal tapping of water mains (Gabarda-Mallorquí, Garcia, and Ribas 2017, Sunday Times 2018). Water levels in the dams are almost exhausted. Experts link this rainfall shortage to global warming and climate change (Muller 2017, Ragab and Prudhomme 2002).

Tourism is a $3.4 billion business for Cape Town, about 9.3% to the GDP of South Africa, and it supports 300,000 jobs (The Lancet Planetary Health 2018). Cancellations of bookings increased and the overall visitors will see a drop of 12.6% (ValueWalk 2018). The tourism season begins in April and tour operators report a lack of queries to the city (Resource Capetown 2018). Water shortage is expected to discourage visitors who will be forced to ration water for drinking, showers, and flushing toilets (Amelia 2018). Tourists will also face rationing of water (Coffey 2018). With such an acute shortage, tourists are scared about the quality of service and if the visit would meet their expectations (Ferreira and Boshoff 2013). Hence, a severe fall in tourism related activity is expected. There would be widespread distress since jobs would be lost, business and economy would be shattered, leading to increased crimes and breakdown of law and order (Chitra 2015).

A number of online media have reported adversely about the water shortage and drought situation and the impending ‘Zero Day’, when water supply would be cut (Turner 2018; Pérez-Peña 2018). The reports paint a grim image of citizens queuing up for water at checkpoints, armed guards standing to quell riots, and citizens ready to fight viciously for a drop of water (Wolski 2018). Such reports increase the fear-mongering and further dissuade tourists from even considering Cape Town in the plan (Diallo 2018). Such negative messages and portrayal of a calamity, is not ethical, even if it true (Gabarda-Mallorquí and Palom 2016; Gopalakrishnan and Cox 2003).

Drought and cities running out of water is a scenario that many cities would face in the future (Cashman and Moore 2012, Rough Guide to Eco Escapes 2011). Many mega-cities such as New York, London, New Delhi, and others are facing these water shortage problems (Neto 2016; Pedro 2013). An understanding of water conservation, regulation, and sustainable methods that Cape Town employs, would help in solving this problem for other cities (Bridge 2017, Kelly 2017, Alonso 2008, Charara et al. 2011).

Cape Town has adopted some drastic measures to manage the water problem (Kelly 2016). These include very strict water rationing, control over water use in hotels, reducing water for agriculture, water leak detection, strict water metering, and pressure management in water pipelines (Welch 2018). Other methods ware waste water recycling, and water demand management (Caricoetzee 2018). There is criticism that these measures are introduced very late.

The analysis and review shows that global warming and climate change, mismanagement of water, and inability to control water use has lead to drought like situation in Cape Town. The tourism industry and agricultural sector will suffer from this drought. Other cities can learn from these problems and implement water use measures.

Alonso, A. (2008). How Australian hospitality operations view water consumption and water conservation: an exploratory study. Journal of Hospitality & Leisure Marketing , 17(3-4), 354-372.

Amelia, H. (2018). Cape Town water crisis: upcoming day zero is impending doom for the city’s tourism industries. Verdict . Web.

Anonymous. (2017). Water-saving solutions for the South African industry. Institution of Civil Engineering , (23), 61-62.

Beham, I. (2018). ValueWalk: Cape Town Water Crisis: Is Day Zero Approaching? Newstex Global Business Blogs. Web.

Bellis, C. (2018). Cape Town’s ‘Day Zero’ pushed to July. Aljazeera . Web.

Bridge, M. (2017). Eco-tourism to top 2018 travel trends’. The Times . Web.

Caricoetzee, M. (2018). How the president hotel plans to defeat Day zero. Biz Community . Web.

Cashman, A. and Moore, W. (2012). A market-based proposal for encouraging water use efficiency in a tourism-based economy. International Journal of Hospitality Management , 31(1), 286-294.

Center for Responsible Travel. (2016). The case for responsible travel: trends & statistics 2016. Responsible Travel . Web.

Charara, N., Cashman, A., Bonnell, R. and Gehr, R. (2011). Water use efficiency in the hotel sector of Barbados. Journal of Sustainable Tourism , 19(2), 231-245.

Coffey, H. (2018). Guests told not to flush toilet at Cape Town hotels as Day Zero approaches. The Independent . Web.

Chitra, N. (2015). Redefining luxury: Experiential, exclusive and eco-friendly are the 3 Es that drive the luxe hospitality business today. Business Today . Web.

DeyàTortella, B. and Tirado, D. (2011). Hotel water consumption at a seasonal mass tourist destination. The case of the island of Mallorca. Journal of Environmental Management , 92(10), 2568-2579.

Diallo, M. (2018). Cape Town could run out of water in April [Video file]. VOA News . Web.

Ferreira, S. and Boshoff, A. (2013). Post-2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup: oversupply and location of luxury hotel rooms in Cape Town. Current Issues in Tourism , 17(2), 180-198.

Gabarda-Mallorquí, A. and Palom, A. (2016). Understanding reductions in water consumption in tourist areas: a case study of the Costa Brava, Spain. International Journal of Water Resources Development , 32(6), 912-930.

Gabarda-Mallorquí, A., Garcia, X. and Ribas, A. (2017). Mass tourism and water efficiency in the hotel industry: A case study. International Journal of Hospitality Management , 61, 82-93.

Gopalakrishnan, C. and Cox, L. (2003). Water Consumption by the visitor industry: the case of Hawaii. International Journal of Water Resources Development , 19(1), 29-35.

Gosling, M. (2018). Cape Town’s taps can still run dry despite possible Day Zero scrapping – experts. News24 . Web.

Kelly, J. (2016). Ethical and green credentials in travel – July 2016. Academic Mintel . Web.

Kelly, J. (2017). The responsible traveler and authenticity/community-based tourism – September 2017’. Academic Mintel . Web.

Machnik, A. (2013). Nature-based tourism as an introduction to ecotourism experience – a new approach. Journal of Tourism Challenges and Trends , 6(1), 75-95.

Muller, M. (2017). Understanding the origins of Cape Town’s water crisis. Institution of Civil Engineering . Web.

Neto, S. (2016). Water governance in an urban age. Utilities Policy , 43, 32-41.

Pedro, L. (2013). Sustainable, responsible tourism: luxury travel’s new trend. Telegraph . Web.

Pérez-Peña, R. (2018). Cape Town pushes back ‘Day Zero’ as residents conserve water. New York Times . Web.

Ragab, R. and Prudhomme, C. (2002). Climate change and water resources management in arid and semi-arid regions: Prospective and challenges for the 21st century. Biosystems Engineering , 81(1), 3-34.

Resource Capetown. (2018). City of Cape Town: Water Dashboard. Resource Cape Town . Web.

Rough Guide to Eco Escapes. (2011). Rough Guide, Episode 2, Channel 5, 27 January. Learning on Screen . Web.

Sunday Times. (2018). Cape Town’s ‘Day Zero’ delayed. Sunday Times, London, UK, p.2.

The Lancet Planetary Health. (2018). Water crisis in Cape Town: a failure in governance. The Lancet Planetary Health . Web.

The Straits Times. (2018). ‘Day Zero’ for dry taps in South Africa’s Cape Town may not occur in 2018, says official. The Straits Times . Web.

Turner, M. (2018). What the Cape Town water crisis means for tourism. Luxury Travel Advisor . Web.

ValueWalk. (2018). Cape Town water crisis: Is Day Zero approaching? Newstex Global Business Blogs . Web.

Welch, C. (2018). How cape town is coping with its worst drought on record [Video File] News. Web.

Wolski, P. (2018). How severe is Cape Town’s drought? A detailed look at the data. News 24 . Web.

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IvyPanda. (2023, October 31). The History of Drought in Cape Town. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-history-of-drought-in-cape-town/

"The History of Drought in Cape Town." IvyPanda , 31 Oct. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/the-history-of-drought-in-cape-town/.

IvyPanda . (2023) 'The History of Drought in Cape Town'. 31 October.

IvyPanda . 2023. "The History of Drought in Cape Town." October 31, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-history-of-drought-in-cape-town/.

1. IvyPanda . "The History of Drought in Cape Town." October 31, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-history-of-drought-in-cape-town/.

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The drought was caused by three years of exceptionally low rainfall, with a combined return period estimated at 590 years translating to a probability of occurrence of less than 0.2%. The severity of the water shortage was intensified by the failure to adhere to the system operating rules, resulting in dam levels ending up significantly lower than should have been the case. Deterioration in relationships both within the Cape Town municipality as well as amongst the different spheres of government involved in water supply had a tangible negative impact on the drought response. Water was politicised to the extent that factual information was mostly ignored and drought interventions weaponised. For a period, Cape Town unwisely accepted responsibility for water supply beyond its legal mandate, thereby seemingly absolving national government, and then produced a remedial plan that was never workable. This resulted in an ill-afforded distraction. The message to the public was that the City had it in hand, while creating a flurry of activity tying up the municipality’s limited resources instead of adhering to practical time-tested drought management interventions. Eventually political conflict culminated in changed leadership of the drought management effort, allowing for a rational focus to be restored. In the end, the close-to-average rainfall experienced in 2018 saved the day by boosting dam storage levels to above three-quarters of capacity and provided the region with some respite to implement preparatory strategies prior to the next, inevitable drought.

Water sustains all –Thales of Miletus

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McKenzie R (2018) Why intermittent supplies are no answer to cities hit by drought. International Water Association, The Source: August 2018. Available at: http://www.wrp.co.za/sites/default/files/event_attachments/The%20Source_August%202018_%20Ronnie%20McKenzie.pdf . Accessed Jan 2021

Van der Merwe M (2017) Hell or high water: face to face with Patricia de Lille and the battle to stave off Day Zero. Daily Maverick, 16 November 2017. Available at: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2017-11-16-hell-or-high-water-face-to-face-with-patricia-de-lille-and-the-battle-to-stave-off-day-zero/ . Accessed Jan 2021

Wallace-Wells D (2019) The uninhabitable earth: a story for the future. Allen Lane, London

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Kaiser, G. (2021). Conclusion. In: Parched - The Cape Town Drought Story. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78889-6_13

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Climate Change: Evidence and Causes: Update 2020 (2020)

Chapter: conclusion, c onclusion.

This document explains that there are well-understood physical mechanisms by which changes in the amounts of greenhouse gases cause climate changes. It discusses the evidence that the concentrations of these gases in the atmosphere have increased and are still increasing rapidly, that climate change is occurring, and that most of the recent change is almost certainly due to emissions of greenhouse gases caused by human activities. Further climate change is inevitable; if emissions of greenhouse gases continue unabated, future changes will substantially exceed those that have occurred so far. There remains a range of estimates of the magnitude and regional expression of future change, but increases in the extremes of climate that can adversely affect natural ecosystems and human activities and infrastructure are expected.

Citizens and governments can choose among several options (or a mixture of those options) in response to this information: they can change their pattern of energy production and usage in order to limit emissions of greenhouse gases and hence the magnitude of climate changes; they can wait for changes to occur and accept the losses, damage, and suffering that arise; they can adapt to actual and expected changes as much as possible; or they can seek as yet unproven “geoengineering” solutions to counteract some of the climate changes that would otherwise occur. Each of these options has risks, attractions and costs, and what is actually done may be a mixture of these different options. Different nations and communities will vary in their vulnerability and their capacity to adapt. There is an important debate to be had about choices among these options, to decide what is best for each group or nation, and most importantly for the global population as a whole. The options have to be discussed at a global scale because in many cases those communities that are most vulnerable control few of the emissions, either past or future. Our description of the science of climate change, with both its facts and its uncertainties, is offered as a basis to inform that policy debate.

A CKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The following individuals served as the primary writing team for the 2014 and 2020 editions of this document:

• Eric Wolff FRS, (UK lead), University of Cambridge
• Inez Fung (NAS, US lead), University of California, Berkeley
• Brian Hoskins FRS, Grantham Institute for Climate Change
• John F.B. Mitchell FRS, UK Met Office
• Tim Palmer FRS, University of Oxford
• Benjamin Santer (NAS), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
• John Shepherd FRS, University of Southampton
• Keith Shine FRS, University of Reading.
• Susan Solomon (NAS), Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Kevin Trenberth, National Center for Atmospheric Research
• John Walsh, University of Alaska, Fairbanks
• Don Wuebbles, University of Illinois

Staff support for the 2020 revision was provided by Richard Walker, Amanda Purcell, Nancy Huddleston, and Michael Hudson. We offer special thanks to Rebecca Lindsey and NOAA Climate.gov for providing data and figure updates.

The following individuals served as reviewers of the 2014 document in accordance with procedures approved by the Royal Society and the National Academy of Sciences:

• Richard Alley (NAS), Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University
• Alec Broers FRS, Former President of the Royal Academy of Engineering
• Harry Elderfield FRS, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge
• Joanna Haigh FRS, Professor of Atmospheric Physics, Imperial College London
• Isaac Held (NAS), NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory
• John Kutzbach (NAS), Center for Climatic Research, University of Wisconsin
• Jerry Meehl, Senior Scientist, National Center for Atmospheric Research
• John Pendry FRS, Imperial College London
• John Pyle FRS, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge
• Gavin Schmidt, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
• Emily Shuckburgh, British Antarctic Survey
• Gabrielle Walker, Journalist
• Andrew Watson FRS, University of East Anglia

The Support for the 2014 Edition was provided by NAS Endowment Funds. We offer sincere thanks to the Ralph J. and Carol M. Cicerone Endowment for NAS Missions for supporting the production of this 2020 Edition.

F OR FURTHER READING

For more detailed discussion of the topics addressed in this document (including references to the underlying original research), see:

• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 2019: Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate [ https://www.ipcc.ch/srocc ]
• National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), 2019: Negative Emissions Technologies and Reliable Sequestration: A Research Agenda [ https://www.nap.edu/catalog/25259 ]
• Royal Society, 2018: Greenhouse gas removal [ https://raeng.org.uk/greenhousegasremoval ]
• U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), 2018: Fourth National Climate Assessment Volume II: Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in the United States [ https://nca2018.globalchange.gov ]
• IPCC, 2018: Global Warming of 1.5°C [ https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15 ]
• USGCRP, 2017: Fourth National Climate Assessment Volume I: Climate Science Special Reports [ https://science2017.globalchange.gov ]
• NASEM, 2016: Attribution of Extreme Weather Events in the Context of Climate Change [ https://www.nap.edu/catalog/21852 ]
• IPCC, 2013: Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) Working Group 1. Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis [ https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg1 ]
• NRC, 2013: Abrupt Impacts of Climate Change: Anticipating Surprises [ https://www.nap.edu/catalog/18373 ]
• NRC, 2011: Climate Stabilization Targets: Emissions, Concentrations, and Impacts Over Decades to Millennia [ https://www.nap.edu/catalog/12877 ]
• Royal Society 2010: Climate Change: A Summary of the Science [ https://royalsociety.org/topics-policy/publications/2010/climate-change-summary-science ]
• NRC, 2010: America’s Climate Choices: Advancing the Science of Climate Change [ https://www.nap.edu/catalog/12782 ]

Much of the original data underlying the scientific findings discussed here are available at:

• https://data.ucar.edu/
• https://climatedataguide.ucar.edu
• https://iridl.ldeo.columbia.edu
• https://ess-dive.lbl.gov/
• https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/
• https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/
• http://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu
• http://hahana.soest.hawaii.edu/hot/

Climate change is one of the defining issues of our time. It is now more certain than ever, based on many lines of evidence, that humans are changing Earth's climate. The Royal Society and the US National Academy of Sciences, with their similar missions to promote the use of science to benefit society and to inform critical policy debates, produced the original Climate Change: Evidence and Causes in 2014. It was written and reviewed by a UK-US team of leading climate scientists. This new edition, prepared by the same author team, has been updated with the most recent climate data and scientific analyses, all of which reinforce our understanding of human-caused climate change.

Scientific information is a vital component for society to make informed decisions about how to reduce the magnitude of climate change and how to adapt to its impacts. This booklet serves as a key reference document for decision makers, policy makers, educators, and others seeking authoritative answers about the current state of climate-change science.

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Essay on Drought for Children and Students

Table of Contents

Drought is a condition when there are no rains for a long period of time. The occurrence of drought is a common sight in many parts of the country. The consequences of this condition are drastic and many times irreversible. Drought is the condition when certain parts of the world are deprived of rain for months or at times the entire season. There are several reasons that cause drought-like situations in different parts and prove to be fatal.

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Long and Short Essay on Drought in English

Here are some short and long essays on Drought of varying lengths to help you with the topic. You can choose any drought essay given below:

Drought Essay – 1 (200 words)

Drought which is marked by the absence of or low rain in a particular region for a long period of time occurs because of various reasons including global warming, deforestation and many other human activities. This climatic condition can cause disastrous impact on the environment as well as the living beings. Some of the effects of drought include failure of crops, financial loss, price rise and soil degradation.

Several Indian states have been hit by drought leading to mass destruction of crops and disruption of the normal functioning of the society. Many parts have even witnessed famine leading to the death of several people due to starvation. Looking at the adversities faced by people in such areas, the government of India has come up with various drought relief plans however a lot more needs to be done to control this problem and deal with its after effects.

Some of the solutions suggested in this direction are rainwater harvesting, recycling and reuse of water, controlling deforestation, sea water desalination, cloud seeding, growing more plants and trees, stopping overall waste of water. However, most of these cannot be achieved if the general public does not support the cause. Each one should thus take it as a responsibility to contribute his/ her bit to curb the problem.

Drought Essay – 2 (300 words)

Drought, which results in the shortage of water, is mainly caused due to lack of rainfall. The situation is problematic and can prove to be fatal for those living in the drought-affected areas. It is particularly a curse for the farmers as it destroys their crops. Continuous drought-like situation also leads to the soil becoming less fertile.

Causes of Drought

There are various factors that lead to drought. Here is a look at these causes in detail:

• Deforestation

Deforestation is said to be one of the main causes of shortage of rainfall that leads to drought. Adequate amount of trees and vegetation is required on land to limit evaporation of water, store enough water on land and attract rainfall. Deforestation and construction of concrete buildings in their place has caused a major misbalance in the environment. It lowers the capacity of the soil to hold water and increases evaporation. Both these are a cause of low rainfall.

• Low Surface Water Flow

Rivers and lakes are the main sources of surface water in various regions around the world. In extreme summers or because of usage of surface water for various human activities, the water in these sources dries down leading to drought.

• Global Warming

The negative impact of global warming on the environment is known to all. Among other issues, the emission of greenhouse gases that results in the rise in earth’s temperature has resulted in the rise in evaporation. High temperature is also a cause of wildfires that worsens the drought-condition.

Apart from these, excessive irrigation is also one of the causes of drought as it drains the surface water.

Though the causes of drought are largely known and are mostly the result of misuse of water resources and other non-environmental friendly human activities, nothing much is being done to curb this problem. It is time the governments of various countries should join hands to overcome this global issue.

Drought Essay – 3 (400 words)

Drought occurs when a region receives no or less than the average amount of rainfall leading to water shortage, failure of crops and disruption of normal activities. Various factors such as global warming, deforestation and construction of buildings have given rise to drought.

Types of Droughts

While some areas are marked by complete absence of rain for a long period of time, others receive less than the average amount of precipitation, yet others might face drought for some part of the year – So the severity and type of drought varies from place to place and from time to time. Here is a look at the different types of droughts:

• Meteorological Drought

When there is a reduction in rainfall in a region for a particular period – it can be for few days, months, seasons or year – it is said to be hit by meteorological drought. In India an area is said to be hit by meteorological drought when the annual rainfall is 75% less than the average rainfall.

• Hydrological Drought

This is basically associated with the reduction in water. Hydrological droughts are often a result of two successive meteorological droughts. These are divided into two categories:

• Surface Water Drought
• Ground Water Drought
• Soil Moisture Drought

As the name suggests, this situation involves inadequate soil moisture that hinders crop growth. This is an outcome of meteorological drought as it leads to lower water supply to soil and greater water loss due to evaporation.

• Agricultural Drought

When the meteorological or hydrological droughts lead to negative impacts on the crop yield in a region, it is said to be hit by agricultural drought.

This is said to be the most severe drought situation. People in such regions do not get any access to food and there is mass starvation and devastation. The government needs to intervene in such a situation and food is supplied to these places from other places.

• Socio-Economic Drought

This situation occurs when there is a decrease in the availability of food and loss of income due to the failure of crop and the social security and access to food for the people in such areas is at risk.

Drought is a difficult situation to deal with especially if the severity is high. Several people are affected due to drought each year. While the occurrence of drought is a natural phenomenon, we can certainly reduce the human activities that lead to such a situation. Government must also come up with effective measures to deal with its after effects.

Drought Essay – 4 (500 words)

Drought, a condition that occurs due to no or very low rainfall, has been classified into different categories including meteorological drought, famine, socio-economic drought, hydrological drought and agricultural drought. Whatever be the type of drought, it disturbs the normal functioning of the regions affected.

Impacts of Drought

The regions hit by drought take a good amount of time to recover from the disaster caused, particularly if the severity of the drought is high. Drought disrupts the day-to-day lives of the people and has a widespread impact on various sectors. Here is how this natural disaster impacts the lives of the people living in the affected region:

• Agricultural Loss

A major impact occurs on the agriculture and other related sectors as these are directly dependent on the ground and surface water. Loss of crop yields, low rate of livestock production, rise in plant disease and wind erosion are some of the major impacts of drought.

• Financial Loss for Farmers

Farmers are worst effected by drought. The crops in the drought hit areas do not yield and the farmers whose sole income is generated through farming are worst affected by this situation. In an attempt to make their ends meet, many farmers end up in debt. The cases of farmer suicides due to such situation are also common.

• Wildlife at Risk

The cases of forest fires increase during droughts and this puts the wildlife population at high risk. Forests get burnt down and many wild animals end up losing life while others lose their shelter.

The prices of various cereals, fruits, vegetables rise because of low supply and high demand. The prices of food items such as jams, sauces and drinks that are produced from those particular fruits and vegetables also increase. In certain cases, goods are imported from other places to meet the demands of the people and hence the prices levied on the same are high. The retailers who offer goods and services to the farmers also face financial loss due to reduced business.

• Degradation of Soil

The soil loses moisture due to continuous drought and its quality degrades. It takes a lot of time for some areas to regain the ability to yield crops.

• Overall Impact on Environment

Damage is caused to various species of plants and animals, there is degradation of landscape quality and biodiversity is impacted. The quality of air and water is also affected due to drought. While some of these conditions are temporary others may last long and might even turn permanent.

• Public Safety at Stake

Lack of food and increased prices of different commodities may give rise to crimes such as theft and this can put public safety at stake. Conflict may also occur between water users thereby causing tension among general public.

Drought Prone Countries

Some of the countries that are more prone to drought include Albania, Afghanistan, Armenia, Bahrain, Northeast parts of Brazil, Burma, Cuba, Morocco, Iran, China, Bangladesh, Botswana, Sudan, Uganda, Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia.

Drought is one of the most disastrous natural calamities. Famine, that is the most severe forms of drought, ends in major socio, economic and environmental loss for the regions affected.

Drought Essay – 5 (600 words)

Drought, a condition when certain regions are faced with scarcity of water due to low or no rainfall, has been the cause of several problems in India. There are many areas in the country that are hit by drought each year while others are faced with this condition occasionally. Drought is caused due to various factors such as deforestation, global warming and inadequate surface water and has severe impact on the lives of the people living in the affected areas as well as the general health of the environment.

Drought Prone Areas in India

Many regions in the country are hit by drought each year. Statistics reveal that approximately one-sixth of the total geographical area of the country that inhabits around 12% of the population is drought prone.

One of the most drought prone states in the country is Rajasthan. As many as eleven districts in this state are hit by drought. These regions receive scanty or no rainfall and have low level of ground water. Drought is also a common phenomenon in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Almost every district here is hit by drought each year.

Here is a look at some of the other regions in the country that face frequent drought:

• Saurashtra and Kutch, Gujarat
• Coimbatore in Kerala
• Mirzapur Plateau and Palamu, Uttar Pradesh
• Kalahandi, Orissa
• Purulia, West Bengal
• Tirunelveli District, South of Vaigai River, Tamil Nadu

Possible Solutions for Drought

• Rain Water Harvesting

This is the technique of collecting and storing rainwater in tanks and natural reservoirs to use it later. Rain water harvesting must be made mandatory for all. The idea behind this is to put the available water to use.

• Sea Water Desalination

Sea water desalination must be done so that the vast amount of water stored in the sea can be used for the purpose of irrigation and other agricultural activities. The government must make major investment in this direction.

• Recycle Water

Waste water must be purified and recycled for reuse. This can be done in many ways. Small steps such as installing rain barrel, collecting the waste water from RO systems, usage of shower buckets, saving water from washing veggies and creating rain garden can help in this direction. The water collected by these means can be used to water the plants.

• Cloud Seeding

Cloud seeding is done to modify weather. It is a way to increase the amount of precipitation. Potassium iodide, silver iodide and dry ice are some of the chemicals used for the purpose of cloud seeding. The government should invest in cloud seeding to avoid drought in the areas prone to this condition.

• Plant More Trees

Deforestation and the building of concrete structures is one of the causes of scanty rainfall. Efforts must be made to plant more trees. This simple step can change the climatic conditions and also bring about other positive changes in the environment.

• Water Usage

Each one should take it as a responsibility to stop the wastage of water so that there is availability of enough water even when during times of low rainfall. Government must take steps to keep a check on the usage of water.

• Campaigns must be Run

The government must run campaigns stating the benefits of rain water harvesting, planting more trees and other measures that the general public can take to fight drought. This is a good way to spread awareness and control the problem.

Though the government has put certain drought relief plans in place however these are not enough to overcome the drastic problem of drought. It is important to take strong steps to avoid this problem. Everyone should contribute their bit to control this problem.

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Desertification is the persistent degradation of dryland ecosystems . It affects the livelihoods of millions of people. In 2000, drylands , which occupy 41% of Earth’s land area, were home to a third of the human population. A significant portion of drylands are already degraded , and the ongoing desertification threatens the world’s poorest populations and hinders the prospects of reducing poverty . Therefore, desertification is one of the greatest environmental challenges today. It is a major barrier to meeting basic human needs in drylands and leads to losses in terms of human well-being .

The causes of desertification include social, political, economic, and climatic factors that contribute to an unsustainable use of scarce natural resources. The magnitude and impacts of desertification vary greatly from place to place and change over time. Furthermore, wide gaps remain in our understanding and monitoring of desertification processes, gaps which sometimes prevent cost-effective actions in affected areas.

Outside of drylands , desertification also has strong adverse impacts, for example by increasing the occurrence of dust storms which affect areas thousands of kilometers away from the desertified areas and can cause political and social problems because of human migrations.

Depending on the degree of dryness of a region, desertification can be prevented and dryland ecosystems restored through specific interventions and adaptations. On the whole, prevention is a much more effective way to cope with desertification, because later attempts to rehabilitate desertified areas are costly and tend to deliver limited results.

The four scenarios developed by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to explore the future of desertification and human well-being in drylands show that total desertified area is likely to increase, and that the relief of pressures on drylands is strongly linked to poverty reduction. The scenarios also show that proactive management approaches will probably be the most effective in coping with desertification. On the whole, combating desertification yields multiple local and global benefits and helps mitigate biodiversity loss and human-induced global climate change . Environmental management approaches aiming to combat desertification, mitigate climate change, and conserve biodiversity are interlinked in many ways. Therefore, joint implementation of major environmental conventions can lead to increased synergy and effectiveness, benefiting dryland populations .

Effectively dealing with desertification will help reduce global poverty , and is essential for meeting the Millennium Development Goals . Dryland populations must have access to viable alternatives in order to be able to maintain their livelihoods without causing desertification. These alternatives should be embedded in national strategies to reduce poverty and combat desertification. More...

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• 5. How will different future development paths influence desertification?
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• 7. Is there a link between desertification, global climate change, and biodiversity loss?
• 8. How can we better understand desertification?

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Home — Essay Samples — Environment — Drought — Drought In African Countries: Effects And Possible Solutions

Drought in African Countries: Effects and Possible Solutions

• Categories: Drought

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Words: 2320 |

12 min read

Published: Jun 9, 2021

Words: 2320 | Pages: 5 | 12 min read

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Impact of drought in rural african communities, possible solutions in overcoming severe effects of droughts, works cited.

• Adelana, S. M., & MacDonald, A. M. (2008). Challenges to sustainable groundwater development in Africa. In Groundwater in the Celtic Regions: Studies in Hard Rock and Quaternary Hydrogeology (Vol. 324, pp. 111-118). Geological Society, London.
• Calow, R., MacDonald, A., & Nicol, A. (2010). Developing groundwater for secure rural water supplies in Africa. In Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers-Water Management (Vol. 163, No. 2, pp. 71-76). Thomas Telford Ltd.
• Devereux, S., & Maxwell, S. (2001). Food security in sub-Saharan Africa. ITDG Publishing.
• Lovell, C. (2000). Gender, rural livelihoods and household water security: Case studies from Zimbabwe and Lesotho. Progress in Development Studies, 2(4), 283-305.
• Overseas Development Institute. (2017). Water, livelihoods and resilience in sub-Saharan Africa. Retrieved from https://www.odi.org/publications/10826-water-livelihoods-and-resilience-sub-saharan-africa
• OCHA. (2004). Ethiopia: Food crisis and public health emergency. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
• ODI. (2017). Water and food security: Key lessons from a review of water-related interventions in development programming. Retrieved from https://www.odi.org/publications/10991-water-and-food-security-key-lessons-review-water-related-interventions-development-programming
• World Food Programme. (n.d.). Addressing water scarcity in Africa. Retrieved from https://www.wfp.org/news/addressing-water-scarcity-africa
• World Bank. (2018). Groundwater governance in Africa: A review of common challenges and best practices.
• Yatenga Documentation Centre. (n.d.). The story of Yatenga.

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• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/la-nina-is-on-its-way-back-an-atmospheric-scientist-explains-what-to-expect

La Nina is on its way back. An atmospheric scientist explains what to expect

One of the big contributors to the record-breaking global temperatures over the past year – El Nino – is nearly gone , and its opposite, La Nina, is on the way.

Whether that’s a relief or not depends in part on where you live. Above-normal temperatures are still forecast across the U.S. in summer 2024 . And if you live along the U.S. Atlantic or Gulf coasts, La Nina can contribute to the worst possible combination of climate conditions for fueling hurricanes .

Pedro DiNezio, an atmosphere and ocean scientist at the University of Colorado who studies El Nino and La Nina, explains why and what’s ahead.

What is La Nina?

La Nina and El Nino are the two extremes of a recurring climate pattern that can affect weather around the world.

READ MORE: Zimbabwe declares state of disaster as El Nino-linked drought devastates southern Africa

Forecasters know La Nina has arrived when temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean along the equator west of South America cool by at least half a degree Celsius (0.9 Fahrenheit) below normal. During El Nino, the same region warms instead.

Those temperature fluctuations might seem small, but they can affect the atmosphere in ways that ripple across the planet.

How La Nina and El Nino form. Video by NOAA

The tropics have an atmospheric circulation pattern called the Walker Circulation , named after Sir Gilbert Walker, an English physicist in the early 20th century. The Walker Circulation is basically giant loops of air rising and descending in different parts of the tropics.

Normally, air rises over the Amazon and Indonesia because moisture from the tropical forests makes the air more buoyant there , and it comes down in East Africa and the eastern Pacific. During La Nina, those loops intensify, generating stormier conditions where they rise and drier conditions where they descend. During El Nino, ocean heat in the eastern Pacific instead shifts those loops, so the eastern Pacific gets stormier.

During La Nina, the Walker Circulation intensifies, triggering stronger storms where the air rises. Graphic by Fiona Martin/NOAA via Climate.gov

During El Nino, the Walker Circulation shifts eastward, so more storms form off California as warm air rises over the warmer waters of the eastern Pacific. Graphic by Fiona Martin/NOAA via Climate.gov

El Nino and La Nina also affect the jet stream , a strong current of air that blows from west to east across the U.S. and other mid-latitude regions.

During El Nino, the jet stream tends to push storms toward the subtropics , making these typically dry areas wetter. Conversely, mid-latitude regions that normally would get the storms become drier because storms shift away.

This year, forecasters expect a fast transition to La Nina – likely by late summer. After a strong El Nino, like the world saw in late 2023 and early 2024, conditions tend to swing fairly quickly to La Nina. How long it will stick around is an open question. This cycle tends to swing from extreme to extreme every three to seven years on average , but while El Ninos tend to be short-lived, La Ninas can last two years or longer.

How does La Nina affect hurricanes?

Temperatures in the tropical Pacific also control wind shear over large parts of the Atlantic Ocean.

Wind shear is a difference in wind speeds at different heights or direction. Hurricanes have a harder time holding their column structure during strong wind shear because stronger winds higher up push the column apart.

READ MORE: This new satellite mission could change how we study hurricanes

La Nina produces less wind shear, removing a brake on hurricanes. That’s not good news for people living in hurricane-prone regions like Florida. In 2020, during the last La Nina, the Atlantic saw a record 30 tropical storms and 14 hurricanes, and 2021 had 21 tropical storms and seven hurricanes.

Forecasters are already warning that this year’s Atlantic storm season could rival 2021 , due in large part to La Nina. The tropical Atlantic has also been exceptionally warm, with sea surface temperature-breaking records for over a year. That warmth affects the atmosphere, causing more atmospheric motion over the Atlantic, fueling hurricanes.

Does La Nina mean drought returns to the U.S. Southwest?

The U.S. Southwest’s water supplies will probably be OK for the first year of La Nina because of all the rain over the past winter. But the second year tends to become problematic. A third year, as the region saw in 2022, can lead to severe water shortages .

Drier conditions also fuel more extreme fire seasons in the West, particularly in the fall , when the winds pick up.

During La Nina, the jet stream tends to be farther north, causing drier conditions across the U.S. Southwest. Map provided by NOAA via Climate.gov

What happens in the Southern Hemisphere during La Nina?

The impacts of El Nino and La Nina are almost a mirror image in the Southern Hemisphere.

Chile and Argentina tend to get drought during La Nina, while the same phase leads to more rain in the Amazon. Australia had severe flooding during the last La Nina. La Nina also favors the Indian monsoon , meaning above-average rainfall. The effects aren’t immediate, however. In South Asia, for example, the changes tend to show up a few months after La Nina has officially appeared.

La Nina is quite bad for eastern Africa , where vulnerable communities are already in a long-term drought .

Typical La Nina climate impacts, though conditions aren’t always like this. Map provided by NOAA via Climate.gov

Is climate change affecting La Nina’s impact?

El Nino and La Nina are now happening on top of the effects of global warming. That can exacerbate temperatures, as the world saw in 2023, and precipitation can go off the charts.

Since summer 2023, the world has had 10 straight months of record-breaking global temperatures. A lot of that warmth is coming from the oceans, which are still at record-high temperatures .

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .

Pedro DiNezio is an associate professor of atmospheric and ocean sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder.

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Minnesota and Wisconsin Under Air Quality Warnings From Canada Wildfires

As smoke from wildfires drifted south over the weekend, officials urged people to avoid prolonged exertion and to limit their time outdoors.

By Claire Moses

If you’re in the northern part of the Central United States and the skies look smoky, here’s why: Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin were under an air quality alert on Monday because of wildfire smoke from Canada.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued the alert for the southern portion of the state, which was set to expire at 11 p.m. Central time on Monday.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources issued an air quality alert on Monday for northwestern Wisconsin that was set to last through the day.

Air quality

Fine particle levels were expected to reach the red air quality index category, the agency said, which also warned that was “a level considered unhealthy for everyone, across all of Minnesota.”

In those areas, officials said, everybody, and particularly sensitive people, should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion and should limit their time outdoors. Sensitive people include those with asthma, people with heart disease or high blood pressure and children and older adults.

The smoke drifted to Minnesota on Sunday, behind a cold front, according to forecasters. In the northern part of the state, air quality had been expected to improve overnight, but smoke was still expected to persist through Monday.

The air quality is unhealthy for everyone.

The smoke in Minnesota and Wisconsin is considered unhealthy for everybody, officials said.

“Air moves long distances and carries pollutants,” the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said. During air quality alerts caused by wildfires, the air is mixed with harmful smoke. How long wildfire smoke lingers depends on the size of the fires, the wind and the weather.

Maps: Tracking Air Quality and Smoke From Wildfires

See maps of where smoke is traveling and how harmful the air has become.

There are several fires burning in Canada.

Firefighters were battling multiple wildfires in Canada over the weekend, including the Teepee Creek fire in Alberta.

One of the biggest, the Parker Lake wildfire, started in Fort Nelson, British Columbia, on Friday and spread quickly with the help of a cold front and winds, according to the British Columbia Wildfire Service.

The Northern Rockies Regional Municipality and Fort Nelson First Nation issued evacuation orders that have affected about 7,200 people in those areas and the town of Fort Nelson since the weekend, Bowinn Ma, the minister of emergency management and climate readiness for British Columbia, said at a news conference on Monday.

“This is an extremely difficult time for people that have been impacted,” she said. “Our thoughts are with you and the province is there to support you.”

She added that the Parker Lake wildfire was more than 13,000 acres on Monday and about a mile west of Fort Nelson.

“The next 48 hours will be a challenging situation for the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality,” she said, noting that westerly winds and extremely dry conditions in the area were contributing to the wildfire.

The region has experienced multiple years of drought, making it more susceptible to “extreme fire behavior,” Ben Boghean, a fire behavior specialist for the British Columbia Wildfire Service, said in a recorded video update.

More winds were expected on Monday morning, Mr. Boghean said, posing challenges to controlling the fire.

Johnny Diaz contributed reporting.

Claire Moses is a Times reporter in London, focused on coverage of breaking and trending news. More about Claire Moses

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