Red meat producers will have access to more specific weather and climate information to help make critical business decisions with the latest release of the MLA supported Bureau of Meteorology’s (BOM) Forewarned is Forearmed products (FWFA), launched on 24 June 2022.
The new features respond to the growing need for information around unseasonal and extreme weather and climate events to build climate resilience and support better-informed decision making.
Users will be able to drill down to their location to view the chance of unseasonal and extreme rainfall and temperature in the weeks, months or seasons ahead.
BOM’s Manager for Agriculture, David McIver said the tools were informed by red meat producers’ day-to-day needs and were developed in consultation with the agricultural industry.
“The tools will help a livestock producer decide when to schedule their muster for the safety of their stock and staff, or a grain grower may choose a window to harvest with confidence that they won’t be washed out,” he said.
“We’ve worked with the sector to understand their needs and develop tools that enhance their decision making capability and reduce their risk.”
The new tools provide:
- rainfall and temperature forecasts for weekly, monthly, and seasonal timeframes at specific locations
- the probability of rainfall over a week, month or season exceeding any amount
- outlooks for three-day rainfall bursts at significant measurements of 15, 25, 50 and 75mm.
To support the release, a live information session is scheduled which will explore the new FWFA forecast products and provide opportunity for Q&A.
Webinar: Forewarned is Forearmed outlooks and new features on the Bureau’s website
The webinar will explore the three new tools developed and recently released by BOM. The new features respond to the growing need for information around unseasonal and extreme weather and climate events to build climate resilience and support better-informed decision making.
Webinar key details:
- Thursday 14 July 1pm AEST
- BOM’s Dr Andrew Watkins (Head of Long-Range Forecasts) and Dr Avijeet Ramchurn (Senior Climatologist) will join Dale Grey (Seasonal Risk Agronomist, Agriculture Victoria) to present and answer questions about the Forewarned is Forearmed outlooks and new features.
- Register for the webinar here: https://unimelb.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0D16cJWITMSPgfkmnntBsw
The new tools are the final instalment of the five year (2017-2022) Forewarned is Forearmed project, supported by funding from the Australian Government’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, as part of its Rural R&D for Profit program in partnership with rural Research and Development Corporations, state departments and universities. The project is managed by Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA).
The tools can be viewed on the Bureau’s website.
