[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 44 (Friday, April 7, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E559-E560]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTION OF THE NATIONAL INTEGRATED DROUGHT INFORMATION SYSTEM ACT 
                                OF 2006

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 6, 2006

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleague 
Mr. Hall in introducing the National Integrated Drought Information 
System Act of 2006. This bill establishes a National Integrated Drought 
Information System--or NIDIS--within the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that will provide early warnings, 
forecasts, and information about drought conditions to mitigate the 
impacts of drought.
  The western part of our country, including my own state of Colorado, 
has experienced severe drought conditions in recent years, with adverse 
consequences that have included severe wildfires that have devastated 
many homes and businesses.
  Droughts are a recurring part of climatic cycles, but that does not 
make them benign. And because unlike hurricanes or other weather events 
they develop slowly and their effects are felt over longer periods, 
there is a danger that efforts to mitigate or reduce the damage will 
not begin in time.
  The direct impacts of drought include reduced crop yields and forest 
productivity, increased fire hazards, lower water levels, and damage to 
wildlife habitats. Droughts are costly to our economy as they reduce 
the incomes

[[Page E560]]

of farmers and increase the prices of foods and agricultural materials 
such as timber. Drought adversely impacts our environment and wildlife 
habitats, taking away from our public lands and recreational 
opportunities, which have become an essential component of the way of 
life for many western communities.
  But while the Department of Homeland Security, is working to prepare 
for natural disasters such as floods and hurricanes, the federal 
government is not doing enough to mitigate and reduce the effects of 
drought.
  Currently, NOAA works with several agencies to produce drought 
forecasts and monitoring. However, a report by the Western Governors' 
Association found that much of the current drought forecasting 
information is overly technical and not in a standard format. Many 
users also are not aware of resources available to reduce the impacts 
of drought.
  The bill that Mr. Hall and I are introducing today responds to those 
problems by expanding NOAA's efforts in drought monitoring and 
forecasting, improving the dissemination of data to ensure more 
informed and effective decisions are made about drought.
  Specifically, the bill establishes an early warning system called 
NIDIS. NIDIS will integrate information from key indicators of drought 
to provide timely assessments. NIDIS will be used to disseminate a 
drought forecast on a regular basis to decision makers on the federal, 
state, local, and tribal levels, as well as to the private and public 
sectors.
  Real-time data is often the most helpful in making decisions about 
drought; however, data is rarely available to decisions makers until 
after the fact. Thus, NIDIS will provide real-time data where possible 
for regional and local drought conditions.
  Our bill also calls for the coordination and integration of federal 
research to support NIDIS, thus ensuring that we continue to understand 
droughts and their impacts. Lastly, our bill directs NOAA to consult 
and coordinate with other federal agencies in the development of NIDIS 
to ensure that all appropriate communities benefit from the system.
  I believe that NIDIS will ensure that we are able to proactively 
reduce the effects of drought and allow decision makers to take 
advantage of all opportunities to reduce as many impacts as possible. 
Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to support the creation of NIDIS and 
better monitoring and forecasting of drought.

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