SC declares severe drought status, advises water restrictions

• The South Carolina Drought Response Committee has maintained a severe drought status for all 46 counties.
• The state is experiencing its driest conditions in 131 years, which has significantly impacted farmers and crop yields.
• Spartanburg Water has asked customers to voluntarily follow water restrictions, while Duke Energy is adjusting reservoir operations.
• Officials state it will take twice the normal rainfall for several months to see a significant improvement in drought conditions.

The South Carolina Drought Response Committee has decided to maintain the severe drought status for all 46 counties in the state.

According to the South Carolina Drought Response Act, there are four levels of drought: incipient, moderate, severe, and extreme.

“You may see other indicators on the news, and there are other drought indicators there that the Drought Response Committee reviews and considers when making their declarations,” said Hope Mizzell, state climatologist with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).

However, the state’s is the official declaration, she said.

The Drought Response Committee on May 21 based its drought status off reports of near record to record low stream flows, declining groundwater levels, wildfire risks, and reports from farmers across the state regarding crops and livestock. These reports have continued in recent months.

“This just didn’t start in March, February, or even January. The drought conditions have been intensifying since last September. The precipitation deficits have been growing month after month after month, and these low statewide rainfall totals had been breaking records for eight months,” said Mizzell.

The drought conditions declaration has prompted Spartanburg Water to ask customers to voluntarily follow water restrictions from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., a request that went into effect May 22 at 1 p.m. Landrum customers were also asked to voluntarily follow the request, which included limiting irrigation on lawns and other vegetation on private and public property.

“We want to be good stewards of our resources and our local environment. We are luckily supposed to get rain over the coming days. The drought has really been kind of ongoing since August, September of last year, and so we just are seeing record levels of low rain,” said Jennifer Chandler, communications manager at Spartanburg Water. “So we just want to be mindful of that.”

SC experiencing driest conditions since record keeping

South Carolina recently experienced its driest conditions in 131 years of statewide rainfall record keeping. From January to April, the state only received seven inches of rain. The state received 16.3 inches of precipitation between September 2025 to April 2026.

Mizell and the Drought Response Committee are hopeful that rainfall in the forecast will ease drought severity. However, summer, when drought conditions typically intensify, hasn’t begun. It will take time for conditions to improve.

“It will take twice the normal rainfall, per week, for several months, to see a significant improvement in the drought.” said Mizzell.

The region is in the state’s top five driest year since 1962, when rainfall records at the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport first began being recorded.

Drought is having ‘significant toll’ on SC farmers

South Carolina farmer are facing uncertain times, and the drought is another challenge that is taking a “significant toll.”

“They’re seeing wilting corn, increased irrigation cost, concern that their irrigation ponds are going to completely dry up,” Mizzell said. “They have a lack of forage for hay or grass for their livestock to graze on. They have low hay fields.”

Some farmers have had to stop growing cotton, peanuts, and soybean altogether due to a lack of moisture in the ground for germinations while others have reported to the SCDNR that the 2026 wheat crop is a total loss.

“We had one livestock farmer report to us that his first spring cutting of hay yielded 80% lower than normal. And the low spring hay yields will jeopardize their winter hay storage for feeding cows,” Mizzell said.

Impacts on farmers from this spring’s low hay yields will be seen through the winter and into the next spring season.

Is SC prepared for extreme drought conditions?

Spartanburg Water is continuing to monitor and evaluate current drought conditions. The water company, which serves 200,000 in Spartanburg County, is supplied by three reservoirs: Lake Bowen, Lake Blalock, and Municipal Reservoir #1, although it does not currently pull from Lake Blalock. In addition, the company is supplied by a treatment plant and Landrum facility.

Communications manager Jennifer Chandler said the company is following its drought management plan and that storage capacity across all suppliers is not of concern at this time.

“We are incredibly blessed in this region with not only our water quality, but water quantity,” she said. “I’m always reading about out west and the issues that they’re facing and whatnot. So yes, while this drought is troubling, with proactive steps ― constant monitoring, constant assessment, like I said, depending on how this goes ― if we need to move to mandatory restrictions, it would just be, like I said, mandatory restrictions on non-essential water usage.”

Non-essential water usage would apply to activities like irrigation, car washing, and not washing your dishes on a full load.

Chandlers also said drought conditions are unlikely to affect rates or surcharges for customers during mandatory restrictions, although customers who use water excessively during the event could be impacted. For instance, daily water usage for a family of four is 5,000 gallons a day on average. A customer who exceeds this amount under mandatory restrictions will be warned by the company before seeing extra charges on their utility bill.

Duke Energy said the drought is not affecting its ability to serve Upstate customers. Although the company is not a primary public water utility, it indirectly supplies water by owning and operating major reservoirs and hydro projects, which are used for power generation and drinking-water withdrawals.

The Keowee-Toxaway Hydroelectric Project, and related reservoirs like Lake Jocasee and Lake Keowee, provide recreational opportunities for locals, cooling water for Oconee Nuclear Station, public water supplies, and significant wildlife habitat.

“Water released from the project at Keowee Hydro flows into Lake Hartwell, a hydroelectric reservoir operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and ultimately into the Atlantic Ocean at Savannah Harbor.” said Ryan Mosier, manager of Duke Energy corporate communications.

Drought operations are coordinated through the Keowee-Toxaway Drought Management Advisory Group, which includes Duke Energy, public water utilities, major water users, and state and federal agencies. Through the management advisory group, a low inflow protocol is followed, first established 20 years ago during the hydro relicensing process.

“We adjust reservoir operations to slow water loss while protecting critical downstream needs; license requirements provide flexibility if conditions worsen,” Mosier said. “We monitor conditions continuously and adjust as needed across the system. There are five drought stages (0–4), based on lake levels, tributary inflows, and the U.S. Drought Monitor. The system is currently in stage 2.”

Mosier said the company is acting early and working with basin partners to navigate the drought. Consistent conservation and rainfall will help the system recover, but this will take more than one or two storms. It will take months.

“This is one of the driest springs on record for the Keowee-Toxaway, and it’s unusual to see drought intensify heading into summer (fall droughts are more common),” he said. “Summer rain often depends on humidity; drought can reduce that moisture, making it harder to break the dry pattern. Looking ahead, conditions remain uncertain. A developing El Niño could bring wetter weather to the Southeast, but it’s not guaranteed.”

In the meantime, Duke Energy said customers can do the following to conserve water:

• Use water efficiently at home and at work, fix leaks promptly.
• Reduce or pause outdoor watering; check and reset irrigation timers as needed.
• Cut indoor use: turn off the tap when brushing/shaving and take shorter showers.
• Run full loads of laundry and dishes.
• Follow guidance from your local water supplier.

Nina Tran is the breaking news and education reporter for The Greenville News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her via email at ntran@usatodayco.com.