Iowa’s 2023 was hot and dry, state review reports

With just over 2 feet of precipitation in total, 2023 marked Iowa’s third year in a row of drought and its 22nd driest in 151 years of records., according to an Iowa Department of Natural Resources review.

It also tied 2016 as the 10th warmest year on record.

The state ended the year with only about 27 inches of precipitation — nearly 9 inches less than normal, according to the report issued earlier this month. Eight months of 2023 saw below-average precipitation, especially during the growing season, when producers reported variable impacts to crops and livestock. Almost the entire state was in some form of drought starting in June.

Northwestern Iowa escaped most of the drought conditions in 2023. Southern Iowa was consistently assigned “drought watch” or “drought warning” under the Iowa Drought Plan. The worst of the drought conditions — exceptional drought — plagued Eastern Iowa during September and October. It covered about 5 percent of the state at its 2023 peak.

The cumulative drought years have left Iowa more than 15 inches short of its regular precipitation, with deficits stretching to nearly 25 inches in some locations.

As a result, Iowa’s soil moisture has taken a hit. Levels steadily declined throughout the dry summer months, especially in Northeastern Iowa. October rains brought some improvement that held through the end of the year. Soil moisture levels will likely stay the same throughout the winter, the Iowa DNR said, when the ground is frozen.

While stream flows across the state were elevated earlier in the year, they were generally below normal for most of 2023. In Southern Iowa, they reached drought emergency level at several points in the year.

“It is hoped that the wet start to 2024 will result in improvement in stream flow as the year progresses,” the Iowa DNR report said. The state received a bounty of snowfall from two winter storms earlier this month, with some areas in Eastern Iowa getting up to 17 inches in a 48-hour span.

2023 brought the heat, too. The average statewide temperature in 2023 was 50.6 degrees — 2.2 degrees above normal. December temperatures were well above normal: In Northern Iowa, they crept up to 12 degrees warmer than average.

Brittney J. Miller is the Energy & Environment reporter for The Gazette and a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues.

Comments: (319) 398-8370; brittney.miller@thegazette.com