The area’s ongoing drought saw significant improvement this week.
The drought was downgraded, according to Thursday’s updated U.S. Drought Monitor map.
A majority of the Kenai Peninsula is now in the zero category drought, known as abnormally dry, while the north west portion of the peninsula is in a category one drought, known as a moderate drought.
Over the summer, areas near the Swan Lake Fire experienced record breaking dryness and heat, which contributed to a level three extreme drought in the area.
The U.S. Drought Monitor — produced in partnership with the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — measures droughts using five levels, level zero being abnormally dry conditions with no drought, and the fourth level being an exceptional drought. The U.S. Drought Monitor Map is updated every Thursday.
