The 100-year drought affecting much of the state of New South Wales has caused more than 1,000 kilometres of the Darling River system to completely dry up. After yet another dry month - much of NSW experienced the lowest May rainfall on record - more than 60 percent of the State is drought-declared, and unless there is rain in the next few
months much larger sections are expected to become completely dry. More water supply problems can be expected as farmers increasingly draw on dwindling ground water supplies normally recharged by rain. The drought-related cloudless skies and dry air are also thought to have contributed to Australia' s coldest ever temperature of -22.2 degrees celsius recorded at Charlotte Pass on 22 June. ("Lack of rain threatens the Darling", Sydney Morning Herald, 18 June 1994; "Critical water shortages cost State $480m so far", Sydney Morning Herald, 18 June 1994; Drought spreads further, Media Release, Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries and Minister for Mines, 28 June 1994; "Charlotte Pass cracks the record for coldest night", The Australian, 30 June 1994).
Note: Eastern Australia has become progressively hotter and drier in recent years. Drought conditions have dominated New South Wales and southwestern Queensland over the past ten years. This period of dryness since the early 1980s may be a reversal of the previously observed trend towards wetter conditions in the east. Bureau of Meteorology figures show that Australia's 11 warmest years have occurred since 1979. The warming is consistent with predicted global warming. Bill Kininmonth, Head of the National Climate Centre, has cited increased concentrations of carbon dioxide as one possible cause for the increase. ("Why it keeps getting hotter", The Daily Telegraph Mirror [Australia], 17 February 1994; "Yes, it really is getting warmer", Sydney Morning Herald, 17 February 1994; see also N. Nicholls & B. Lavery, "Australian rainfall trends during the twentieth century", International Journal of Climatology, v.12, p.153-163, 1994).
GREENPEACE Climate Impacts Database