NSW, Australia 24 September 2009 dust storm (image: Australian Weather Bureau)
Qld, Australia, borders showing, dust storm 23 September 2009 (Image: Australian Weather Bureau)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Sydney, Australia is dusting itself off after gale-force winds dumped millions of tons of dust on it from the deserts west of the city, gumming up transportation systems, delicate machinery, people’s lungs and the view. The same winds are currently depositing thin films of dust in parts of New Zealand. Sydney is preparing for a second round of dust storms. Australia is not one of the countries currently implementing a new early warning system for sandstorms, which might have helped prevent some of the chaos, according to officials at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in Geneva. “Until now, Australia has not been affected in a major way by this kind of storm,” a spokesperson explained to GenevaLunch.
“The reported level of suspended particulate mass (PM10) in highly populated Sydney was around 1,000 times higher than on a clear day,” said WMO’s specialist on sandstorms, Len Barrie.
“It is fifty times higher than the well established level beyond which impacts on human health are known to occur. Sand and dust storms of such intensity are often seen in other parts of the world, particularly in Asia and Northern Africa. The dust is transported well beyond the continental source regions across oceans to other continents, and plays an important role in weather, climate, ocean ecosystems and human health.”
Experts from the WMO and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), meeting in Buenos Aires 24 September, warn “there will be an increased frequency of drought, especially in dryland regions of the world”, due to climate change. The WMO is coordinating efforts to develop and implement a warning advisory system for sand and dust storms. The goal is ” to enhance the ability of countries to deliver timely and quality sand and dust storm forecasts, observations, information and knowledge to users”, according to the WMO.
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News story, GenevaLunch, 25 September 2009.
Filed under: International organizations
Tags: advisory system, Buenos Aires Argentina, dust storm, New Zealand, sand storm, Sydney Australia, UN Convention to Combat Desertification, WMO, World Meteorological Organization