The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Eastern Conn. facing drought conditions, according to monitor
Nearly half of Connecticut is experiencing abnormally dry or drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, prompting local farmers and state authorities to be on alert should dry conditions continue into the height of summer.
The area of drought — stretching from about the Connecticut River to Boston, including most of Rhode Island — has experienced below-average rainfall in recent months, according to the drought report.
The severity of the drought is enough to cause some minor crop damage and voluntary water restrictions, though officials in Connecticut said those consequences have yet to be felt in the state.
Farmers in eastern Connecticut said Wednesday that the dry weather has prompted them to take some proactive measures to protect fruit crops that are coming into season, such as strawberries and blueberries. However, the conditions have yet to pose a risk to water-intensive apple and peach orchards that will not start bearing fruit until later in the summer.
“We’ve been irrigating our strawberries every day for a while just because it’s so dry,” said Scott Lavezzoli, manager at Scott’s Farms and Greenhouses in Essex. “Last night we got about an inch of rain, so we’re fortunate about that.”
Irrigation pumps, which run on gasoline, are costly to operate due to the rising price of fuel, Lavezzoli added, saying he’s “cautiously optimistic” that the weather will improve.
Near the edge of the area experiencing “abnormally dry” conditions, the lowest rung on the scale used by the Drought Monitor, farm manager Brad Isnard said the weather had yet to seriously impact the harvest of strawberries at Bishop’s Orchards in Guilford, where customers can pick their own fruit beginning in mid-June.
“It was a dry May, but we’ve had a few rains,” Isnard said. “There’s really not much to be concerned about.”
While forecasters are split on whether New England will continue to see parched conditions throughout the summer, the outlook published last month by the National Weather Service predicted that temperatures are likely to remain above normal through August.
The current seven-day forecast for New London shows a partial chance of rain lasting from Saturday to Monday.
As a result of drier conditions in Connecticut, the state’s Interagency Drought Working Group last week moved New London County and Windham County into “Phase 1” of the state’s drought preparedness plan, which serves as a notice to state agency that drought conditions exist. However, the designation does not prompt any wider public notifications or recommendations to cut water usage.
“We know that things are becoming drier, so it’s that internal ‘Let’s make sure things are ready to go there,” said Martin Heft, an undersecretary at the Office of Policy and Management who chairs the Drought Working Group.
The working group will meet again in July to discuss whether to take any additional actions, or to remove the “Stage 1” designation if conditions return to normal.
Despite the dry conditions, there are no concerns about fires in the Connecticut State Parks and Forests, Will Healey, spokesperson for the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
“Per our Forestry Division, there are no burn bans in place as a result of the drought conditions, and we aren’t considering any at this time,” Healey said. “Fire danger today is low.”
He noted that there is a chance of showers over the weekend, which would “keep the forest fire danger in the low to moderate range.”
“That amount of rainfall will not have much if any impact relieving the drought, however,” Healey said. “As the top layers of the soil continue to dry the risk of stubborn ground fires will increase.”