In an effort to support hinterland agriculture, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Hydromet Department has re-operationalized a number of weather stations across the country.
After over twenty years of being inactive, the Wauna Climate Metrological Station in Barima Waini, Region One was recently re-operationalized as part of the agriculture ministry’s efforts to ensure weather changes and climatic conditions are correctly recorded in order to foster improved agricultural practices.
Works carried out on the station were concluded on June 25th of this year and trial test have since commenced to ensure the effective use of the new state of the art technology. This station is now fully equipped with the instruments to effectively measure a number of weather related activities such as temperature, rainfall, wind speed and direction, evaporation, soil temperature, sunshine hours, etc.
In addition, the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) was able to carry out works on its AgroMet station which will function collaboratively with the Climate Met station. Both stations are scheduled for commissioning in October of this year as part of the Agriculture Month calendar activities.
Another weather station is also set to be re-established at Kato in Region Eight. This weather station has also been down for in excess of twenty years and as a result made it difficult to determine the weather patterns in the region which has had a direct effect on residents and agricultural related practices. This facility will be equipped with an automatic weather station along with an automatic hydrological station.
In an invited comment the Chief Hydromet Officer (ag) Dr. Garvin Cummings stated that the projects will have great impacting benefits on hinterland agriculture. “With the operation of these stations we will be able to conduct water quantity monitoring and also monitor the Chiung Falls which has hydro power potential.”
In the early part of September, the Ministry will also be establishing a climate station at Barima. This too will be equipped with the necessary equipment to effectively predict climatic changes and weather patterns to foster improved agricultural practices in the hinterland.
The hydromet arm of the Ministry is also in the process of procuring tidal stations to provide tidal data. The first will be stationed in the Berbice River in the vicinity of the Berbice River Bridge.
Agriculture Minister Noel Holder, recognizing the importance of the hydro metrological services to agriculture, has been lobbying for the establishment of tidal stations.
