Growers in the Riverina are set for a wet and warm season this year, according to the climate outlook from the Bureau of Meteorology.
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The predictions come after the wettest and hottest winter in half a decade, according to bureau of climatologist Dr Andrew Watkins.
"Nationally, we've seen the wettest winter since 2016 ... Australia's average winter temperature is also expected to be one of the ten warmest on record, particularly in the tropical north," he said.
He added that a climate driver called the Indian Ocean Dipole had given them further reason to believe that the spring would be very wet.
"This negative IOD is expected to persist throughout spring but is currently weaker than the last negative IOD event we saw in 2016, which brought Australia's wettest May-October period on record."
For growers and producers in the Riverina, this could be a huge blessing.
A grower from Gogeldrie, Rob Houghton, explained that the increased rainfall and heat would mean a high-stakes, high-reward harvest this year. Mr Houghton has been growing for almost 40 years.
"Rain is always good. It's going to make our job more challenging but for all the right reasons. Our dams are full, they'll continue to be full and that'll be important for water allocations," he said.
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Mr Houghton continued that the possibility of water damage to the crops meant they'd have to take constant advantage of dry periods.
"It puts pressure on us to get crop out before it gets damaged, that's always an issue with a wet spring ... The only thing is that if it gets really hot, some of the canola might be impacted and if the moisture doesn't arrive at the right time, it could affect yield outcome" he added.
Mr Houghton added that this kind of season should be considered normal but that recent years had thrown things out.
"A lot of the younger fellas wouldn't see this as normal, seeing two years like this in a row... we can't be too frustrated though because when you're dealing with the environment, it is what it is."
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