Drought

By Ma Ma

What is a drought?

There is no universal definition for a drought. A drought occurs when there is not enough water for people to use for everyday living. In the summer there is not much rain. A drought normally occurs in the summer, where there is often no fresh water to drink or use. Often a drought happens when there is no rainfall for a long period of time. Australia is constantly living through a drought, and we now have to learn to live with drought.

How and why does a drought occur?

A drought can occur when there is low rainfall and it often happens in summer. Australia has one of the most uneven rainfall climates in the world. Over the long term we have about three good years and three bad years out of ten. The strongest cause for drought in Australia is the climate phenomenon called the Southern Oscillation. This is a major air pressure shift between the Asian and east Pacific regions and is best known as the El Nino effect. When severe droughts occur, all the animals and plants die, making life hard for our industry and farms.






Examples of droughts around Australia

Droughts always occur around Australia. We are in the middle of a drought at the moment and some people say it could be here to stay as in 2006 Australia had, had its 11th hottest year ever. Research states that droughts occur sometimes every 18 years and they can last for up to many years. The table below shows the droughts around Australia and the effects they had on us.

The effects of major drought
1864-66
All States affected except Tasmania.
1963-68
Widespread drought. Also longest drought in arid central Australia: 1958-67. The last two years saw a 40 per cent drop in wheat harvest, a loss of 20 million sheep, and a decrease in farm income of $300-500 million
1880-86
Southern and eastern States affected.
1895-1903
Sheep numbers halved and more than 40 per cent loss of cattle. Most devastating drought in terms of stock losses.
1911-16
Loss of 19 million sheep and 2 million cattle.
1972-73
Mainly in eastern Australia.
1918-20
Only parts of Western Australia free from drought.
1982-83
Total loss estimated in excess of $3000 million. Most intense drought in terms of vast areas affected.
1939-45
Loss of nearly 30 million sheep between 1942 and 1945.
1991-95
Average production by rural industries fell about 10 per cent, resulting in possible $5 billion cost to the Australian economy, $590 million drought relief provided by the Commonwealth Government between September 1992 and December 1995.




How do droughts affect people and the environment?

The people and the environment are most affected by a drought. Agriculture suffers first and most severely, yet eventually everyone feels the impact. Droughts upset cropping programs, reduces breeding stock and threatens permanent erosion of the capital and resource base of farming.
There is a big risk of environmental damage, particularly through vegetation loss and soil erosion. These have long term effects for our environment. Water quality suffers, and toxic algae outbreaks can occur, plants and animals are also threatened. Bushfires and storms often increase during droughts.

What are some of the ways in which people can prepare their homes/communities for a drought?

There is a Drought Watch Service which provides us with information on preparing us in a national drought. Drought declarations take account of other factors in addition to rainfall and are the responsibility of the State Government.
When we are in a drought, the government places water restrictions on each state. At the moment NSW is on level 3 water restrictions which include the following:
Hand-held hosing of lawns and gardens and drip irrigation is now allowed only on Wednesdays and Sundays before 10 am and after 4 pm
No other watering systems or sprinklers are to be used at any time
A permit from Sydney Water is required to fill new or renovated pools bigger than 10,000 litres
No hosing of hard surfaces including vehicles at any time
No hoses or taps to be left running unattended, except when filling pools or containers
Fire hoses must only be used for fire fighting purposes – not for cleaning.
Some interesting facts about Droughts

Australia is the driest inhabited continent in the world, even though some areas have annual rainfall of over 1200 millimetres. Australia’s climate is highly uneven, across the continent generally, as well as from year to year.

We therefore must learn to live with the drought.




Interesting pictures and graphs about Australian droughts


Australian farmer doing it tough in the drought



Information on the 2007 drought in NSW
Information about the drought around Australia

Bibliography

Websites:

Living with Drought, The Australian Government Webpage
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/drought/livedrought.shtml

Planet Earth: Kidscyber Webpage
http://www.kidcyber.com.au/

What causes drought? http://library.thinkquest.org