December’s rain no delight for region

As New Zealand recorded one of its warmest years, Taranaki closed out 2020 with a wetter than average December and temperatures ranging between a cool two degrees Celsius and a warm 27C.

Nationally, 2020 was the seventh warmest year on record for New Zealand, with an average temperature of 13.24C.

Six of the past eight years have been the hottest on record, continuing a consistent trend of global warming, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) reported.

Niwa has not recorded a month with below average temperatures since January 2017.

In Taranaki, the regional council’s monthly regional weather round-up recorded an average air temperature of 15.8C, or 0.6C cooler than normal for the month, with Stratford recording the hottest day with 27.6C, and Duffy’s Farm, Whareroa, the coldest day with 2.8C.

Eight sites recorded new minimum temperatures for the month ranging from 2.6C at Whareroa to 7.2C at Okato, Taranaki Regional Council hydrology data analyst

Fiona Jansma reported.

It was wet in Taranaki in December, with rainfall at 42 per cent more than average throughout the region.

Only Stratford and North Egmont sites had below-average rainfall, Jansma reported.

The highest rainfall was recorded at Omahine, near Waverley, at 215.5mm, 30mm more than its previous highest recording of

185.5mm in 2011, Jansma said. Duffy’s Farm at Whareroa, South Taranaki, recorded 170mm, almost twice the normal monthly average.

Overall rainfall in 2020 averaged

100 per cent, with most of the regional sites above average or near normal.

Nationwide rainfall during 2020 was 80-119 per cent near normal for the west coast North Island, according to Niwa.

As a result of high rainfall in December, river flows were also above normal between 169 and 297 per cent, while river temperatures were below normal at 0.46C and

2.1C.

The Waitara River, at Bertrands Road recorded its highest monthly maximum flow at 920.8 litres per second after heavy rain fell on Te Maunga/Mt Taranaki, and the eastern hill country on December

10.