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Drought Impacts in the Southern Region

The economic, social, and environmental costs of drought can be significant. To promote stronger drought resilience on federal lands, the National Drought Resilience Partnership was initiated in 2016. As a part of this effort, the U.S. Forest Service conducted a series of focused workshops across the country to build the capacity to address the impact of short- and long-term drought on forest and rangeland resources, thus informing land management, restoration, and climate change adaptation.

In January 2017, the USDA Forest Service hosted a two-day drought adaptation workshop in Atlanta, Georgia to share state-of-science information on drought and climate effects in the region and to develop management response strategies. The workshop was attended by regional experts from the Forest Service Southern Region, Southern Research Station, and Office of Sustainability and Climate; the USDA Southeast Regional Climate Hub; and state and federal climate offices. They met to address challenges, cultivate opportunities, and develop and expand the collective understanding of the most effective management strategies to adapt to and mitigate the effects of drought in the region. The workshop focused on the effects of, and management responses to drought in forest, riparian, and aquatic ecosystems.

A synopsis of the workshop is available in this fact sheet.