ABSTRACT
Water scarcity is a natural phenomenon that happens all over the world and could result in serious problems in arid regions. In this chapter, first, basic definitions of drought and its characteristics and impacts on the environment and society are given. It is emphasized that by appropriate drought planning, the damages of droughts can be mitigated and the resiliency of society in facing droughts would increase. Public participation as a key issue in this regard is also discussed. Then, the features of a successful drought response plan and the challenges in its development are discussed. A multistage approach in emergency drought response plan is introduced. In this approach, different drought indices covering different aspects of drought impacts are utilized and thresholds for drought 642initiation, development, and termination are proposed. Furthermore, the necessity of drought monitoring in this utilization approach is discussed. Finally, virtual drought exercise as a useful tool in the evaluation and development of drought contingency plans is introduced.
