Paul Rosser 
Another very dry month, with only 7mm in 30 days, giving us a mere 44mm for the year to date. May is not looking good at this stage, if you have a tank & a garden. It is also causing problems for the native planting season, which usually starts in late April, early May.
Perhaps the farmer to our north on Bowering Hill knows something we don’t. He was ‘dry seeding last week in anticipation that rain is on the way. Many long term forecasts are predicting little rain until the middle of June with some saying late June.
How does this compare with other years:
2024 7.0mm 44.0mm YTD
2023 66.0mm 124.0mm
2022 23.0mm 73.5mm
2021 22.0mm 81.5mm
2020 52.0mm 110.0mm
2019 4.5mm 14.5mm
2018 9.0mm 27.0mm
2017 63.0mm 146.5mm
2016 11.0mm 105.0mm
2015 79.5mm 123.5mm
2014 40.0mm 108.0mm
2013 23.0mm 67.0mm
2012 27.0mm 142.0mm
The average at Aldinga Post Office Weather Station from1894 to 1991 was 39.9mm. The average for April over the last 13 years, measured at our home is 32.9mm. A slight drying in rainfall.
Looking at the Fleuriou Peninsula for the next quarter, we can expect average rainfall. Temperatures, both day & night will be slightly above average & soil moisture will be below average given the dry weather of the last three months. I have been giving our native garden a good drenching with the hose every four weeks since February 1st. If nothing comes in May a further drenching will happen towards the end of May.
Over the past three months a series of Highs have drifted over the State passing over Kangaroo Island. Normally by now these Highs are more northerly than at present allowing cold wet fronts to come through. This has also caused Oodnadatta to have 40 degree days on a regular basis since last January. That is changing now with 30’s appearing recently & over the past fortnight down to the 20’s. This is looking better but the stream of highs is still lower than usual.
All the oceans are returning to mid-range readings as El Nino comes back as autumn progresses. Seas have been & continue to be warmer than the long-term average. This is consistent with Climate Change modelling.
It has been interesting to hear what will be the effects of Climate change. We all accept dryer conditions in many areas, more frequent storms, flooding in others, rising sea levels & hotter conditions but recently our Security Agencies have been looking at Border Security as a major issue. As conditions worsen people will begin to move location to avoid starvation as crops fail, sea levels rise & so on. Already we are hearing about our Pacific Islander friends having their islands submerged. Many are looking to migrate to our shores. The question is ‘Are we prepared for this?’
I was pleased to hear about the Seed Bank proposed for the Aldinga Arts and Eco Village. This is a great project for a State that has decimated our native flora & fauna. While a recent paper on tree coverage in Adelaide was said to be 17%, most of it was around the foothills. The suburbs were lacking in tree cover & this is getting worse as larger blocks are subdivided for ‘boundary to boundary’ flats & units. Nowhere for tree cover or water penetration into the water table. Native plant cover in the Adelaide area was down to 3% a few years ago with the rest of the State at around 20 %. Such low coverage is not good during summer from a heat point of view.
Another thing is black roofs on new houses. The new subdivision at Hart Road has almost 100% of houses with black roofs. Black roofs, black bitumen roads & few trees means more air conditioning will be required to cool these houses. The Village is right to have a pale roof policy. Perhaps we need more open days to educate people in the benefits of sustainable housing – low heating & cooling costs, more energy efficient & better living conditions. I haven’t seen their tanks arrive as yet, that is if they have one. With the size of the houses being built nothing less than a 50,000 litre tank will be acceptable but perhaps their blocks will be too small to have a suitable tank & be water efficient. We’ve got a long way to go in convincing architects, developers & town planners in the benefits of good climate science.
That’s it for this month.
Paul
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