Mauritius Meteorological Services Capabilities for the provision of climate services at national level Prem Goolaup Deputy Director St Paul Road, Vacoas. Mauritius Tel. +(230)57 86 08 38 Email: prem.goolaup@gmail.com 14 March 2016
Outline Introduction Capacities for the Management of climatic data Current capabilities for climate monitoring Current capabilities for the provision of climate services to climate sensitive sectors Limitations of the Meteorological Services in the provision of climate services User interface Platforms Good practices in the development and application of climate services Conclusion
Introduction The Mauritius Meteorological Services is a Government Institution under the aegis of the Prime Minister s Office for the purpose of carrying out those meteorological and related functions which the Government recognizes as a responsibility of the State in support of the safety, security and general welfare of the citizens and in fulfilment of its international obligations under various UN Conventions, more specifically, the World Meteorological Organization.
Introduction - Our Mandate Vision To be a proactive, highly efficient and effective institution in all matters regarding weather and climate Mission To provide accurate and timely weather information and meteorological products for the general welfare of the citizens of the Republic. Quality Objective Our objective is to attain excellence in the timely delivery of effective and quality service in an equitable manner so as to optimize customer satisfaction
A. Climate Database Capacities for the Management of climatic data Clicom software since the late eighties As from the late nineties, the backup were exported in a spreadsheet As at February 2016, less than 5% of climate data have not been digitized. Data are quality controlled and homogenized Accessibility of data and products. Intranet password protected B. Climate Products Descriptive statistics: sum, mean, median, SD, CoV Graphics, line and bar charts, trend lines, frequency tables, wind rose, isoline maps Publication: Climate of Mauritius Monthly Climatological Summaries C. Reference Period: 1981-2010. For climate change studies: 1961-1990
Current capabilities for climate monitoring A. Climate monitoring Monitoring ENSO: Status from NCEP, IRI and BoM Local variables: Rainfall, Temperature and SST Indian Ocean Mauritius: 23 Rainfall stations, 5 Temperature stations (Including 2 synoptic stations, ECV) Rodrigues: 3 Stations including 2 synoptic stations St Brandon: 1 synoptic station Agalega: 1 synoptic station
Current capabilities for climate monitoring National Observation Network 24 AWS in Mauritius 3 AWS in Rodrigues B. Analysis of Climate data Climate trends and detection of climate change. Computation of climate change indices using Rclimdex Analysis of extremes and return period (rainfall for some stations only and cyclone gusts) Climate change scenarios was worked in 2008 during the preparation of the SNC. Mauritius is outside the CORDEX (Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment) domain. Statistical downscaling.
Observation Network Element Current capabilities for climate monitoring No of Observation sites Length of records (years) 1 Rainfall 200 Over 100 years at some stations Remarks Excluding AWS 2 Temperature 26 Over 40 years Excluding AWS 3 Atmospheric pressure 19 Over 40 years Including Rodrigues and the outer Islands 4 Wind 35 Over 40 years 9 Dynes, 22 AWS + 4 outer islands 5 Relative Humidity 20 Over 40 years Excluding AWS 6 Bright Sunshine 23 Over 40 years 7 Evaporation 21 Over 40 yeas
Current capabilities for the provision of climate services to climate sensitive sectors Climate Services Agriculture Water Health DRR Fortnightly Agromet Bulletin in pentads Pentad rainfall in 17 agroclim zones Seasonal fcast Ad hoc info Fortnightl y bulletin Seasonal Fcast Ad hoc info provided on request On request only Seasonal forecast Data related to natural hazards on request Technical report on extreme weather events
Current capabilities for the provision of climate services to climate sensitive sectors No well established National Climate Forum exist in Mauritius but ad hoc line of communication exist when and as a need arises. Climate Services Construction Tourism Rainfall, temperature, wind, relative humidity, etc on request Rainfall, temperature, wind and sea state on request
Limitations of the Meteorological Services in the provision of climate services A. Limited Services to the health sector No regular specific request from the health sector Lack of capacity both ways Inadequate line of communication between health authorities and the weather service B. Limitations to the provision of climate services operationally Limited Human Resources and capacity Lack of appropriate software, for eg. no climate database, no statistical software, no GIS software for drawing contour, iso-lines, layering etc C. Private Sector Helps in collecting climate data. But not really involved in providing climate services
User interface Platforms Good line of communication: Agriculture sector Water sector and DRR No MoU exists for the provision of climate services to the above sector A mix of agreement between the institutions on an ad hoc and as and when there is a need.
Conclusion Thank you for your kind attention