For the first time this year, the drought of 2012 has now touched all of Wisconsin.
In its latest report, the US Drought Monitor says the entire state is now rated as abnormally dry or worse. It marks the first time the entire state has been under some sort of drought designation since extended dry periods started in June.
The drought map of the Badger State now shows abnormally dry conditions in the entire Northwoods area, in a line running from Manitowoc to Turtle Lake. The rest of the state is still in a moderate or severe drought, despite scattered showers and thunderstorms that have swept across Wisconsin in recent weeks.
The drought has eased somewhat in southern parts of the state. Racine and Kenosha County are no longer part of the list of counties under an extreme drought, and the map of impacted areas does continue to shrink. As of now, Lafayette and Green counties are the only full counties considered to be completely under an extreme drought designation.