May 2026
Greater Sydney Local Land Services
Production outlooks remain positive across most of the region.
- Rainfall through May was above average across the region.
- Most of the region remains in the NSW-CDI Non-Drought category, with the underlying drought indicators remaining high.
- Parts of the region remain in the Drought Affected category. Recent rainfall will likely aid short-term recovery for these regions, though further rainfall will be critical to trigger longer-term drought recovery.
Click on the scroll bar below the map to compare with previous months.
The DPRID Drought Forecast suggests that drought conditions are likely to expand at the end of August 2026 (issued 31 May 2026).
- Much of the northern and eastern parts of the region are likely to see conditions decline and further areas transition into the Drought Affected category at the end of August.
- The forecast is being driven by the increased chance of below median rainfall for the coming three months.
- There is moderate to high model agreement and moderate to high past accuracy for this forecast period.
| NSW-CDI Category | April 2026 | April 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Drought | 94.5% | 85.7% |
| Recovery | 3.3% | 6.1% |
| Drought Affected - Weakening | 0.7% | 0.0% |
| Drought Affected - Intensifying | 1.5% | 8.2% |
| Drought | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Intense Drought | 0.0% | 0.0% |
Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)
Plant greenness levels remain near to above average much of the region for the March to May period.
- The full influence of rainfall in late May will be available in the next Update.
- Note that some of the extremely negative NDVI areas (brown patches) are water bodies or changes due to urban development.
The NDVI anomaly is a useful measure of vegetation density and plant health. It estimates the amount of green vegetation there is in the landscape compared to what is expected at the given time of year, against the baseline period 1987 - 2020.
Click on the scroll bar below the map to compare with previous months.
Individual Drought Indicators
Drought indicators continued a declining trend across the region during May.
- While late autumn rainfall has slowed the recent decline in the underlying indications, further rainfall and opportunities for plant growth will be needed to maintain productive conditions for some locations (e.g., Gosford region).
- At other locations, the underlying drought indicators remain high.
Observing the trends of the underlying drought indicators of Soil Water, Plant Growth and Rainfall is useful in tracking long-term changes in conditions.
Find out more about the underlying drought indicators here: https://www.dpird.nsw.gov.au/climate_applications/interactive-drought-map/Learn-more/understanding-the-cdi-phases
To access a Drought History chart for your Parish, visit the Seasonal Conditions Information Portal.
