Field of dreams or dream team? Assessing two models for drought impact reporting in the semiarid southwest

Arizona DroughtWatch (AZDW) was a web-based data collection system designed to gather drought impacts reports from across the state to inform decisions about drought status and response options in Arizona. Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) was tasked with providing leadership in this effort through their drought program. A drought plan was developed with the goals of identifying the impacts of drought to the various sectors, defining the sources of drought vulnerability and outlining a monitoring program, and preparing drought response options and drought mitigation strategies. Three groups were created to achieve certain goals, including Local drought impact groups (LDIG), the county-level ad hoc volunteer groups of local stakeholders led by Arizona Cooperative Extension and county emergency management with a mission to inform the public about drought.