Since the beginning of the year, 2,216mm of rainfall has been recorded in Sydney, already surpassing the highest annual amount of water falling on the city since it began recording rainfall in 1858. The last record dates in 1950, when Sydney recorded 2,194mm of rain, according to the Observatory Hill weather station.
With the year not yet over and the La Nina phenomenon heralding a rainy summer, the final rainfall rate in 2022 will most likely be much higher. Sydney, and more broadly the state of New South Wales, are expecting a big downpour this weekend.
The slightest amount of rain could have serious consequences, warned Steph Cooke, the state’s emergency services minister. “We know that our retention ponds are saturated, the control dams are full and our rivers are overflowing. So any additional rainwater, no matter how small,” is likely to increase the risk of flooding, he stressed.
Australia is at the forefront of the consequences of climate change, with floods, forest fires, cyclones and droughts becoming more frequent and intense as the planet warms, scientists warn.
