Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand

New Zealand: Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was 1.69 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
1.69 Percentage change
Change on year
up 132.4%
World rank
28th
of 168 countries
All-time high
6.98 Percentage change
in 1951
All-time low
-13.49 Percentage change
in 1954
Years of data
76
1950–2025

Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand, 1950–2025

-15-10-505195019872025

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.

Analysis

New Zealand recorded 1.69 Percentage change for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 132.4% on the previous year and up 130.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand peaked at 6.98 Percentage change in 1951 and was at its lowest, -13.49 Percentage change, in 1954.

New Zealand ranks 28th of 168 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand, year by year

Annual values for Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand, 1950 to 2025.
Year Percentage change Change
1950 -4.98 Percentage change
1951 6.98 Percentage change -240.0%
1952 -3.9 Percentage change -155.9%
1953 0.26 Percentage change -106.7%
1954 -13.49 Percentage change -5289.1%
1955 -6.24 Percentage change -53.8%
1956 -1.36 Percentage change -78.2%
1957 -3.51 Percentage change +158.1%
1958 -9.98 Percentage change +184.0%
1959 -4.99 Percentage change -50.0%
1960 -0.4935 Percentage change -90.1%
1961 -3.14 Percentage change +535.7%
1962 0.4624 Percentage change -114.7%
1963 -2.83 Percentage change -711.6%
1964 -5.17 Percentage change +82.8%
1965 2.29 Percentage change -144.3%
1966 2.72 Percentage change +18.7%
1967 1.64 Percentage change -39.7%
1968 1.23 Percentage change -24.7%
1969 2.57 Percentage change +108.4%
1970 0.8928 Percentage change -65.2%
1971 -1.4 Percentage change -256.4%
1972 -1.25 Percentage change -10.7%
1973 -9.21 Percentage change +638.6%
1974 -1.48 Percentage change -83.9%
1975 4.89 Percentage change -430.1%
1976 4.85 Percentage change -0.7%
1977 2.91 Percentage change -40.0%
1978 -5.22 Percentage change -279.0%
1979 5.83 Percentage change -211.8%
1980 6.44 Percentage change +10.4%
1981 0.2681 Percentage change -95.8%
1982 1.68 Percentage change +526.7%
1983 -0.6321 Percentage change -137.6%
1984 0.292 Percentage change -146.2%
1985 -1.49 Percentage change -609.2%
1986 6.78 Percentage change -555.8%
1987 3.17 Percentage change -53.2%
1988 -5.27 Percentage change -266.2%
1989 1.31 Percentage change -124.8%
1990 0.8809 Percentage change -32.6%
1991 2.58 Percentage change +192.9%
1992 1.87 Percentage change -27.4%
1993 5.27 Percentage change +181.1%
1994 -2.77 Percentage change -152.6%
1995 4.89 Percentage change -276.4%
1996 1.58 Percentage change -67.6%
1997 -1.33 Percentage change -183.6%
1998 -2.84 Percentage change +114.6%
1999 -3.94 Percentage change +38.4%
2000 2.2 Percentage change -155.8%
2001 -6.28 Percentage change -385.9%
2002 -2.98 Percentage change -52.5%
2003 -1.75 Percentage change -41.4%
2004 6.01 Percentage change -443.9%
2005 -0.2143 Percentage change -103.6%
2006 -1.25 Percentage change +482.2%
2007 -3.26 Percentage change +161.0%
2008 -2.98 Percentage change -8.4%
2009 2.28 Percentage change -176.4%
2010 -4.09 Percentage change -279.5%
2011 -0.77 Percentage change -81.2%
2012 1.25 Percentage change -262.8%
2013 -5.54 Percentage change -541.7%
2014 -1.16 Percentage change -79.1%
2015 -5.61 Percentage change +385.3%
2016 -2.78 Percentage change -50.4%
2017 1.65 Percentage change -159.3%
2018 5.83 Percentage change +253.9%
2019 -1.41 Percentage change -124.2%
2020 -4.91 Percentage change +247.3%
2021 -0.901 Percentage change -81.6%
2022 2.51 Percentage change -378.6%
2023 5.05 Percentage change +101.2%
2024 -5.22 Percentage change -203.4%
2025 1.69 Percentage change -132.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s -4.12 Percentage change -13.49 Percentage change 6.98 Percentage change 10
1960s -0.0727 Percentage change -5.17 Percentage change 2.72 Percentage change 10
1970s 0.0825 Percentage change -9.21 Percentage change 5.83 Percentage change 10
1980s 1.25 Percentage change -5.27 Percentage change 6.78 Percentage change 10
1990s 0.6203 Percentage change -3.94 Percentage change 5.27 Percentage change 10
2000s -0.822 Percentage change -6.28 Percentage change 6.01 Percentage change 10
2010s -1.26 Percentage change -5.61 Percentage change 5.83 Percentage change 10
2020s -0.296 Percentage change -5.22 Percentage change 5.05 Percentage change 6

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 25 Papua New Guinea 2.24 Percentage change compare
  2. 26 Ireland 2.17 Percentage change compare
  3. 27 Suriname 1.91 Percentage change compare
  4. 29 Niger 1.65 Percentage change compare
  5. 30 Thailand 1.54 Percentage change compare
  6. 31 Vanuatu 1.46 Percentage change compare

See the full ranking of 3200 places →

More environment data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand?
Historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand was 1.69 Percentage change in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 6.98 Percentage change in 1951.
What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was -13.49 Percentage change in 1954.
How does New Zealand rank for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
New Zealand ranks 28th out of 168 countries with data for 2025.
Is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is up 130.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this New Zealand data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/historical-exposure-to-drought-cropland-soil-moisture-anomaly/new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly
Unit
Percentage change
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
3,200 places, 243,200 data points, 1950–2025
Last refreshed

The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer (0 to 7 cm) 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 1981-2024 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 based on the ERA5-Land reanalysis dataset. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org