Drought in Australia Research Project

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Block: 2-4


Part A: Introduction

        Many areas of the world today suffer from drought, whether it is due to the area’s natural and geographical location or other factors such as global warming and climate change. Drought, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is defined as: a period of dryness especially when prolonged; specifically, one the cause the extensive damage to crops or prevents their successful growth.1 The part of the definition that’s most important is the prolonged and dryness. Droughts by nature are just periods of dryness, therefore the duration of it will have significant impact on the damage it can cause to the affected area, influencing the ecosystem, people, and even its economy. The most common type of drought that occurs are either short, intense droughts that last a few months, or longer, less intense droughts that can last several years or decades. Droughts can be cause by a variety of factors. One factor is the location of the area. Some regions naturally suffer from drought due to the flow of global atmospheric circulation. High pressure areas, such as the sub-tropic high pressure belt at around 20o North and South Latitudes to 30o North and South Latitudes, respectively, allow warm, dry air to descend and create conditions that are common for desert. Other natural processes also allow for droughts. An example is the El Niño which causes droughts throughout Australia2.El Niño is a disruption in the atmospheric-ocean system in the tropical Pacific. During El Niño the trade winds flow east towards South America due to the top of the Pacific Ocean being covered in warm water. This causes a shift from a low pressure system that Australia has on a normal year to a high pressure system. The nature of the high pressure system, as mentioned earlier, is descending, warm, and dry air, meaning Australia becomes more susceptible to drought. This case study will go on to talk about other factors affecting drought in Australia and its implications.

Part B—Describe a Region:

        Drought has been a prevalent issue in the country of Australia for several centuries. Drought here is defined as the extreme shortage of water in any form. Australia is a country known for having eight deserts, and thus a lack of precipitation would be common. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, an interval in which rainfall is below the 10% mark of rainfall1 in a region is considered to be drought. Australia has recently been inflicted with a longer term drought termed the “Big Dry” or the Federation Drought in 2003. This drought lasted for nine years, leading to several negative effects and little to no rainfall until 2012, where the last areas of Bundarra and Eurobodalla in New South Wales2-3 were claimed to be free of drought. The Big Dry has resulted in a variety of social and economic problems in the region due to the lack of rainfall, including the decline of the sheep population and the inability to cope with the demand of people given such a low supply. Here in Australia, regions such as New South Wales will inevitably suffer from drought with its arid conditions and the impact of the El Niño Southern Oscillation.

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Part C—Effects of Drought on Australia

Social Effects:

        One of the major effects that drought has on Australia citizens is the decline of job opportunities in the agricultural sector. It is estimated that 134,000 farm businesses are found in Australia; around 99% of those farms are family owned7. It must also be noted that about 70% of Australia is either arid or semi-arid land8, meaning that water itself is scarce. In the face of a drought however, the farmers are unable to grow their crops due to the lack of water availability. Although most of Australian farmers have ...

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