Despite recent heavy rainfall and snowstorms, Carbon, Schuylkill, Lehigh and Northampton counties remain under drought warnings and Monroe County remains in a drought watch.

“To see groundwater recharge and surface water recovery, there will need to be consistent sustained surpluses in precipitation,” Patti Monahan, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, explained.

The four counties were placed under drought warnings last month by DEP’s Drought Task Force. Before that, each was part of a drought watch.

Monahan noted that abnormally dry conditions were spotted near the end of 2025.

“For Schuylkill County, groundwater and surface water gauges show that 2025 was the driest year since 2002,” Monahan said.

And an observation well in Carbon County, she said, had the lowest levels on record last year.

“The well has been operational since 1994,” Monahan noted.

Stream levels in Carbon County have also been the lowest in about two dozen years, she said.

Both counties were placed under drought watches in October. Lehigh, Monroe and Northampton followed in December.

The region isn’t alone. DEP notes that most of Pennsylvania is impacted, with 17 of 67 counties under drought warnings and 34 under drought watches. None are in drought emergencies.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, drought recovery can take some time.

“In order to recover from a drought, one needs to get the normal precipitation plus enough precipitation beyond normal to erase the deficit,” NOAA notes.

DEP data shows the region is beginning the year with below average precipitation. Schuylkill County is about 1.42 inches below normal; Lehigh County is 0.71 inches below and Carbon County is 0.57 inches below.

Deficits in Northampton and Monroe counties aren’t as severe with 0.4 and 0.16 inches respectively, the data shows.

Monahan said DEP doesn’t just look at precipitation to determine drought. It also looks at stream flow, groundwater levels and soil moisture.

That’s why a light rain might be enough to keep plants green and grass growing — but might not be enough to prevent or recover from a drought, she said.

“Drought is not always obvious, and drought recovery likewise isn’t always obvious,” Monahan said.

She noted that by issuing drought watches and warnings, people can begin conserving water to limit the chance that the drought will worsen.

“Hopefully it will also help speed recovery,” Monahan noted.

She also explained that there’s no way to estimate “how much” rain would be needed to remove counties from drought watches or warnings.

“There are many factors that go into determining recovery from drought, so it isn’t possible at this point to identify an amount of precipitation that would signify a return to normal status” for the local counties, she said.

Monahan noted that DEP and the Drought Task Force will continue to monitor conditions. The task force will meet later this month.