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Nearly 50% of Tennessee is in ‘extreme’ drought

Caroline EggersWPLN News
A plant is dry in Nashville on Nov. 2, 2023.
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Nearly half of Tennessee is in extreme drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. 

Drought conditions have been expanding and contracting across state land since October. The drought peaked during the week of Nov. 21, when 56% of the state was considered at a level of “extreme” or “exceptional.”

Nashville currently has “severe” drought conditions while many counties across Middle Tennessee face “extreme” drought. Historically, severe drought conditions in Tennessee have meant poor air quality, bad water quality, aquatic species die-offs and low stream or creek levels. The extreme categorization usually means wildlife has an inadequate supply of water. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration projects that the drought will persist across Tennessee for the next few months.

Caroline Eggers, Environmental Reporter

Caroline Eggers covers environmental issues with a focus on equity for WPLN News through Report for America, a national service program that supports journalists in local newsrooms across the country. Before joining the station, she spent several years covering water quality issues, biodiversity, climate change and Mammoth Cave National Park for newsrooms in the South. Her reporting on homelessness and a runoff-related “fish kill” for the Bowling Green Daily News earned her 2020 Kentucky Press Association awards in the general news and extended coverage categories, respectively. Beyond deadlines, she is frequently dancing, playing piano and photographing wildlife and her poodle, Princess. She graduated from Emory University with majors in journalism and creative writing.

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