May 1, 2026 4:00 a.m.
On Wednesday, the Douglas County Board of Commissioners declared an Emergency Drought Order for Douglas County at the request of Public Works Director Scott Adams.
A county release said commissioners determined that extraordinary measures must be taken to alleviate the suffering of citizens and livestock and to protect or mitigate economic loss, as well as be responsive to the threat of wildfires.
Douglas County is the tenth county to declare an emergency drought order in Oregon this year. Governor Tina Kotek has already declared State of Drought Emergencies in nine counties in the state. Douglas County has sent an urgent letter to the Governor, requesting an official executive order from the state for an Emergency Drought Declaration for the county. The executive order will allow increased flexibility in how water is managed to ensure that limited supplies are used as efficiently as possible and authorize state agencies to expedite water management tools to users who would not otherwise have access.
The order cited that Douglas County agricultural, livestock, forest products industries, and related businesses are experiencing economic hardship and potential serious injury and losses resulting from extreme weather conditions within the county. The conditions will result in the loss of economic stability, decreased feed and pasture production, shortened growing season and decreased water supplies for the county’s agricultural, livestock and vineyard producers.
As of March 24th, the Oregon Water Resources Department Water Conditions Report states that the county’s stream flows were 58 percent of average for the month of March. The report also states that soil moisture levels are very low and the snow water equivalent for the Rogue-Umpqua Basin is 14 percent of the historical median. The most recent three-month outlook prepared by NOAA Climate Prediction Center indicates “conditions are likely to persist, as probabilities favor above normal temperatures and below average precipitation”. As of March 17th, the U.S. Drought Monitor for Oregon illustrates that the majority of Douglas County is already in Moderate Drought.