Eastern Australian Drought
OFFICIAL drought figures reveal just 1.9 per cent of New South Wales is considered satisfactory.
The area of NSW battling drought is 73.6 per cent, a marked increase from last month (up from 67.7 per cent), says Minister for Primary Industries, Tony Kelly.
The area of NSW which is considered satisfactory has decreased to 1.9 per cent of the State (down from 4.9 per cent), while 24.5 percent of NSW is considered marginal (down from 27.4 per cent).
“These figures illustrate the tough conditions in country NSW with almost the entire state now feeling the effects of this relentless dry,” says Mr Kelly.
“Not even the coastal areas of NSW have escaped; they are either drought declared or suffering marginal conditions.
“In fact, the latest drought map of our state only shows one satisfactory patch, which is in the Central Tablelands.
“As summer approaches, we can expect warmer temperatures and hot winds – this combined with the forecast of below average rainfall will see pasture growth and water supplies decline.”
Mr Kelly says Industry & Investment NSW had estimated that the winter crop harvest was now more than 75 per cent complete and dry conditions had taken a devastating toll.
“Hot, dry weather prompted an early harvest this year and in most parts yields have been disappointing due to a combination of moisture stress and frost damage,” he says.
“Farmers planted 3.2 million hectares of wheat this year, however just 2.6 million hectares is expected to harvested.
“The NSW cotton crop is forecast at 100,000 hectares, which is still less than 50 per cent of normal plantings.
“While livestock condition and the availability of stock water is reasonable, many areas will face stock water issues over summer if we don’t receive decent rain soon.
“In terms of water supplies, the total storage level is 31 per cent of total storage capacity, up 3.2 per cent on last month and 0.6 per cent lower than the same time last year.”
