NEW ZEALAND’S DRY YEARS

Taranaki Daily News, 22 December 1931, Page 7

NEW ZEALAND’S DRY YEARS

lgl 4 , Iglg AND IggO THE WORST,

CONNECTION ‘WITH AUSTRALIA.

It seems ceitain that no year, as far bfk a~ least as 1864, was as dry a,s 1914, says the Director -of-Meteorological Services, Dr. E. Kidson, in a memorandum, “Dry Years in New •Zealand.” Over most of the North. Island .the rainfall deficiencies in 1914 exceeded 10in. Indeed, for the North Island’ as a whole, and especially for the Auckland province, 1914 was undoubtedly the driest year hitherto recorded. It was also very dry in Nelson and Marlborough. It is a very interesting fact that in 191'4 Australia suffered the severest drought in its history. The next very dry year was 1919, which in the North Island was almost as dry as 1914. In 1919 there was a severe drought in Victoria and New South Wales.

For the country as a whole, '1930 proved to be the driset years of all, but the North Island, except in districts north of Hawke’s Bay, did not suffer so severely as in 1914 and 1919. A few heavy and rather local falls raised the totals very considerable in Taranaki and in small areas about Auckland. In Australia it was a wet year. When New Zealand has a dry year, the effects are not' sd disastrous as the effects of a drought in Australia, for instance; “The strength of New Zealand’s position from a climatic point of view,” remarks Dr. Kidson, “is well illustrated by her experiences in these, the driest years she has experienced. In none of them did the primary producer stiffer anything approaching disaster. We are fortunate in having large areas which receive about the optimum amount of rainfall for the growth ,of> good pas’* turea. In. the areas of Iqw ; rainfall the reliability is high, and a large part falls in spring and summer, when it is most needed.”