Collaboration key in the meteorological world

Collaboration is key in the meteorological world, as climate-sensitive developing countries such as Barbados seek to manage changing climatic risks and current and emerging issues of climate variability.

This was the message sent by Dr. David Estwick, Barbados’ Minister of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and Water Resource Management, as he delivered the feature address at the opening of the 53rd Meeting of the Caribbean Meteorological Council held at the Radisson Aquatica Resort, Aquatic Gap, Bay Street, St. Michael, on Monday.

Dr. David Estwick (left), Barbados’ Minister of Agriculture,
Food, Fisheries and Water Resource Management, in talks
with Tyrone Sutherland, Co-ordinating Director of the Caribbean
Meteorological Organisation (CMO), during the session.

“The theme for this year’s meeting, ‘Towards a Global Framework or Climate Services’, clearly demonstrates that trade is indeed not the only issue which requires a global co-operative effort. The issue of weather and climate will also have to be dealt with in a collaborative and co-operative fashion as well, if we are to succeed and stem the tide of climate change and its attendant consequences,” Minister Estwick told local and regional delegates gathered.

“Collaboration is key in the meteorological world, for here, there are no political or territorial boundaries which preclude the free exchange of data and other information between meteorological agencies,” Dr. Estwick added.

Information emanating from the World Meteorological Organisation as recently as November 13th 2013, Estwick said, indicates that the year 2013 is currently on course to being among the top ten warmest years, since records were collected in 1850.

“A study conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the USA, suggests that both the number and intensity of tropical cyclones are likely to increase by the end of the century,” Estwick observed.

“The question may be asked, ‘Are we now in an era of superstorms?’ In 2012, there was Sandy and just recently, Typhoon Haiyan, a maximum category five storm with wind gusts of up to 235 miles per hour. Haiyan resulted in the deaths of many and left thousands homeless,” Minister Estwick announced.

“The damage and casualties it inflicted on the Philippines and other countries along its track, is indicative of the future threats that tropical cyclone prone regions such as the Caribbean are likely to face as the climate continues to warm during this century,” he lamented.

Acknowledging the work done by the Caribbean Meteorological Organisation (CMO), which is an arm of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Dr. Estwick noted that this regional body is a functional autonomous agency within the CARICOM family, which collaboratively deals with the whole question of climate variability, on a daily basis.

Current and emerging issues of climate variability also feature very strongly on the WMO agenda, Minister Estwick noted. At present he said, a Global Framework on Climate Services (GFCS) has been established, aimed at reducing the vulnerability of society to climate-related hazards, through better provision of climate services.

It is therefore important, he said, that all relevant interest groups – government experts and user organisations – feed into the Framework, as the means to strengthen existing capacities and achieve synergies and leverage in climate services.