The cutoff low pressure system that just crossed southern Australia brought enough rain to start making people there feel optimistic, but once again, southern Queensland and other areas in eastern Australia got left out. Still, gotta start somewhere!:
Although heavy rain across South Australia, Victoria and NSW brought welcome relief to farmers struggling with the drought, the Murray-Darling Basin Commission has warned that at least one more metre of rain is required.
The water storage level in the Hume Dam rose from 170gigalitres to 180GL with the latest falls, but was still at just 6 per cent of capacity.
Commission chief executive Wendy Craik said that although the falls were good news, especially for farmers, much more was required.
"This has been very welcome but it really is mostly just wetting up the catchments," she said.
... Mixed-farmer Roy Pickering of Maldon, northwest of Melbourne, said the recent rain had been enough to "get us started on cropping".
"It's rained here every day for the last five days, significant rain, about 60mm for May so far, which is above the monthly average," Mr Pickering said.
"We desperately needed a very good fall of rain ... steady and heavy.
"It rained a couple of months ago but not enough to get the crops - oats, wheat, barley and canola - going and that's two-thirds of our business.
"This week's rain has turned the country from a dry dust-bowl into beautiful lush pastures.
"Over the last eight to 10 years, only two or three have been decent; the rest have been very tough."
Victorian Farmers Federation spokesman James Meek said farmers in the Wimmera and Mallee regions in the state's northwest reported the best start to the season for a decade.
"They've managed to sow half their crops with some rainfall a month or so ago and now they're looking forward to putting the remainder in on a damp, moist bed when the ground dries out a bit," Mr Meek said.
"At the moment it's too wet for some of them to get their tractors into the paddocks."
Farmers in NSW also welcomed good falls.
Tibooburra, in the state's far northwest, has recorded 275mm this year - more than its annual average of 225mm. The three days of rain this week followed a downpour last month.
Nearby, Bourke received 95mm on Thursday, its wettest day since 1995.
Meteorologist Jake Phillips said the drought was still a long way from breaking.
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