15 January 2013

1 minute read

Oceania

Much of Australia experienced a severe heatwave this week, due to a large body of hot air over inland areas. At one stage the Bureau of Meteorology was forced to add a new colour to its interactive forecast charts to capture the 50ºC+ temperatures forecast for some remote areas.

The hot and dry conditions with accompanying winds fanned a number of major bushfires across the country, particularly in Tasmania, south-west Victoria and New South Wales.

Information available to Dairy Australia suggests that to date, effects on dairy farms have been limited and localised – milk collections in one area of south-eastern Tasmania were briefly interrupted, whilst fire damage to pastures was reported on at least one farm in inland NSW.

Despite many fires being brought under control, ongoing concerns surround indirect impacts such as power outages and road access issues.

Farmers in some northern Victorian irrigation regions as well as the Macalister Irrigation District in Gippsland will benefit from additional water allocations announced during December, increasing their ability to maintain summer pastures or kick-start growth in the cooler Autumn months.

TheCattleSite News Desk