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It might not be hard to believe after the wet weather this week here in Houston, but our area is one of the few in the state that isn't still experiencing drought conditions.

The latest U.S. Drought Monitor map is a mass of dark reds and deep yellows, but the Houston area is white. That means while we're completely free of drought conditions, most other parts of the state are still dry.

Mark Svoboda is with the Drought Monitor at the University of Nebraska.

"I think we're much better off for a good portion of Texas than we were a year ago, but having said that, a good portion of Texas, in fact when you just look at drought in general, we still have 77-percent of the state in some form of drought and 10-percent or so almost in the most extreme two categories, so there's still some drought to be dealt with the western part of the state."

Svoboda says the recent rains here and the proximity to the Gulf make our area an exception right now.

"A very small sliver of the state is in nothing. Actually, 4.5-percent, and you're in it. Having the Gulf at your back door certainly helps compared to some of the more arid parts of the state up in the Panhandle and over in the  Big Bend region, but that's part of that geographic advantage you folks have in the Houston-metro area."

Svoboda says despite what was an unexpectedly wet winter and spring, the Houston area could still experience some problems if things dry out again later this summer. 

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