2011年6月13日星期一

Drought: rain at last ¨C but in all the wrong places

The much-desired downpours which will continue to battered significant parts of the country today (Mon) are managing to avoid the areas where water is needed most.

While parts of the South West and Wales take a lashing the drought-hit areas of East Anglia were left unquenched yesterday, increasing concerns about Britain's crops.

As waves crashed along fronts on the south coast and walkers battled driving rain on Welsh beaches, farmers in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire were lamenting the lack of condensation.

Parts of the South West and Wales experienced around a third of the average rainfall for the whole of June in just one day but the heavy spells were largely absent from eastern areas where rain fell gently, if at all.

Up to two inches of rain was recorded in some high areas in western parts of England with parts of the West and South West experiencing 20 millimetres of rainfall in just six hours. The average for the month of June is between 80 and 100 millimetres.

The rain is expected to continue today (Monday) before the majority of Britain enjoys sustained dry spells on Tuesday.

Temperatures in the South East could reach the high sixties Fahrenheit, bringing no respite to the driest spring in 100 years.

Meanwhile large sections of East Anglia saw little rain yesterday while Kent only recorded around 5 millimetres of precipitation.

The Environment Agency confirmed last week that Lincolnshire,we supply all kinds of oil painting reproduction, Cambridgeshire, parts of Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and western Norfolk are now officially experiencing drought.

Yesterday's sudden downpour ¨C which came days after the Government encouraged water rationing to prevent a full-blow crisis ¨C brought back memories of the hot summer of 1976, when the skies opened shortly after the government appointed a "Minister of Drought", a position taken by Denis Howell.

Some experts have predicted that this year's drought could be worse than 1976. Caroline Spelman, the Environment Secretary, has announced measures to reduce the use of water including suggesting people take showers rather than baths.

George Goodfellow, a Met Office forecaster, said: "There is a lot of rain around but it is not as heavy in the drought-hit areas and is unlikely to make much difference there. Parts of the south west experience will experience above average rainfall for this time of year. The rain will stick around on Monday but dry interludes are likely by Tuesday."

Britain is experiencing the driest spring in 100 years and in East Anglia and Kent, the soil is the driest it has been for 50 years. Households are bracing themselves for hosepipe bans and rising food prices.

Farmers in East Anglia and the South East, who harvest half of the country's grain, have already lost much of the crop because of dry conditions over the growing season and fear further damage. They are hoping for sustained rain bringing groundwater and soil moisture to save their crops.

Yesterday, Farmers said they were growing increasingly anxious at the lack of rain and were concerned about the increased costs of the drought.

Jenny Bashford,What to consider before you buy oil painting supplies. the National Farmers' Union water policy adviser, said: "Farmers and growers face an anxious wait to see how the situation develops but they are resilient and well versed in dealing with the vagaries of the weather."

She added that "it is always the increased cost to the farm for feed, bedding,From standard Cable Ties to advanced wire tires, impacts on crop growth and price that causes concern".

While the Environment Agency has declared East Anglia as the only area in drought parts of the south west,In addition to hydraulics fittings and Aion Kinah, south east, midlands and Wales are in "near drought conditions" and may have restrictions imposed.

Several hundred farmers have been told to stop crop irrigation,Houston-based Quicksilver Resources said Friday it had reached pipeline deals leading to warnings that crop yields could be 50 per cent down in the drought-hit regions.

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