The seventh-wettest July on record won't save Illinois from drought
After an exceptionally dry June, the Chicago area was doused with the seventh-wettest July since 1871.
The official weather station at O'Hare recorded 7.61 inches of rain - nearly 4 inches above Chicago's historical average precipitation for the month, which is 3.58 inches. The much-needed precipitation came after one of the state's driest springs on record, but more showers will be needed to lift Illinois out of drought.
According to the National Weather Service, the most rain ever to fall at O'Hare in July was in 2011, when the weather station there recorded 11.15 inches. Meanwhile, the Midway weather station tallied a remarkable 11.28 inches this July, the most at the station since 1928.
In contrast, April, May and June were some of the state's driest on record, laying the groundwork for the state's drought. While the rains in Cook, DuPage and Kane counties helped alleviate the "severe" drought classification in most of those areas, the counties are still in either "moderate" drought or "abnormally dry" conditions.
Lake and McHenry counties remain engulfed in the "severe" drought rating, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, along with portions of west central and southwest Illinois. As of July 25, more than two-thirds of the state remains in at least moderate drought, and 14% of Illinois is in severe drought.
The "severe" rating generally means fire risk is heightened, stream and pond levels are low, water conservation is encouraged and crops are in danger of lower yields come fall.
Drought recovery is tricky, and despite an overall wet July, precipitation was "spotty and inconsistent" throughout the state, according to the state climatologist's latest drought report.
"The areas that have caught more than 2-3 inches of rain since the start of July have seen dramatic improvement in soil, crop, and stream conditions. However, some parts of the state have continued to largely miss beneficial rains, creating a patchwork of haves and have nots," state climatologist Trent Ford wrote in the report. "Moving forward, we will need consistent, near- to above-normal precipitation through August to really begin to improve drought conditions and avoid worse impacts to agriculture, ecology, and hydrology."
Over the next eight to 14 days, precipitation outlooks are leaning "above normal," while the monthly precipitation outlook reports that the Chicago area has equal chances of getting above or below normal rain.
• Jenny Whidden is a climate change and environment writer working with the Daily Herald through a partnership with Report For America supported by The Nature Conservancy. To help support her work with a tax-deductible donation, see dailyherald.com/rfa.