Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in California
California: Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was 0.8111 Percentage change in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in California, 1981–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2024, exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in California stood at 0.8111 Percentage change.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 68.6% on the previous year and up 106.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in California peaked at 17.07 Percentage change in 1983 and was at its lowest, -16.16 Percentage change, in 2013.
California ranks 61st of 711 regions on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.82 Percentage change | -6.31 Percentage change | 17.07 Percentage change | 9 |
| 1990s | 0.1356 Percentage change | -11.04 Percentage change | 16.77 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -2.7 Percentage change | -11.3 Percentage change | 6.21 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -3.72 Percentage change | -16.16 Percentage change | 9.21 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -6.05 Percentage change | -12.16 Percentage change | 2.58 Percentage change | 5 |
Countries ranked near California
- 58 Mali -0.6902 Percentage change compare
- 59 East of England -0.7914 Percentage change compare
- 60 Canada -1.22 Percentage change compare
- 61 Panama -1.31 Percentage change compare
- 62 Sao Tome and Principe -1.39 Percentage change compare
- 63 Tohoku -1.48 Percentage change compare
- 64 Iraq -1.69 Percentage change compare
More environment data for California
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -4.36 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -3.83 Percentage change (2025)
- Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 0.0346 Percentage change (2024)
- River flooding exposure — Cropland share exposed to river flooding 16.08 Percentage of agricultural land area (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Grassland 49,362 Square kilometres (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Loss of cropland 3,322 Square kilometres (2022)
- Land cover and land cover change — Gain of artificial surfaces 3,623 Square kilometres (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in California?
- Exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in California was 0.8111 Percentage change in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in California?
- The highest recorded value was 17.07 Percentage change in 1983.
- What is the lowest exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in California?
- The lowest recorded value was -16.16 Percentage change in 2013.
- How does California rank for exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- California ranks 61st out of 711 regions with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in California?
- Over the last ten years it is up 106.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this California data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer compared to the reference period 1981-2010. Exposure indicators to drought have been prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The datasets span the period 1981-2022 and is the result of the use of a variety of geospatial data sources, including the ERA5-Land averaged monthly data of volumetric soil moisture and ESA CCI land cover data. Average anomalies have been calculated for both land and cropland exposure to drought. The dataset has a global coverage on a national level; on the sub-national TL2 level (i.e. large subnational regions) results are reported for all OECD countries as well as for Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South Africa. A number of aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas and the LAC region. Data source(s): Copernicus Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Copernicus Climate Data Store monthly soil moisture data (ERA5). Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Database documentation