Appomattox County receives drought warning advisory

Appomattox County has been identified as an area of concern in a government report involving drought warnings.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), in coordination with the Virginia Drought Monitoring Task Force, has expanded a drought watch advisory to include 64 counties, an expansion of nine counties from the previous advisory. Seven counties remain under a drought warning advisory. All regions except for portions of southwest Virginia, the Middle Peninsula, and Tidewater are affected.

While recent rains have provided some relief over the past two weeks, the entirety of Virginia remains below historical averages, with exceptional dryness in the Shenandoah Valley and along the Blue Ridge. Area-averaged rainfall since the beginning of the current water year (Oct. 1) has remained below long-term normal values for most of the Commonwealth.

DEQ is working with local governments, public water works, and water users in the affected areas to ensure that conservation and drought response plans and ordinances are followed. All Virginians are encouraged to protect water supplies by minimizing water use, monitor drought conditions, and detect and repair leaks.

See the current drought status on the DEQ website at www.deq.virginia.gov. 

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