South West NRM's team of environmental scientists have been working quietly in the front lines of the drought preparation space under one of its major focus areas of Sustainable Agriculture for almost a decade.

The organisation has therefore welcomed news of the WA State Government's announcement of an $8.6 million funding package to support Western Australian producers as they navigate current dry season challenges.

South West NRM also encouraged farmers to contribute to a time critical survey to help inform the State Government's Dry Season Taskforce and being distributed by Cattle Australia, Sheep Producers Australia and Western Dairy.

Survey Link:

South West NRM CEO Dr Manda Page said the funding announcement was welcome news for farmers as well as for the broader community.

"While it is our farmers who are shouldering the burden of this crisis right now and deserve as much support as we can provide, longer term the implications of these issues will be felt by everyone as food prices shoot up and availability becomes scarce," Dr Page said.

The announcement followed a crisis meeting of farmers in Yornup earlier this month to express their collective frustration at a 'perfect storm' of challenges they were encountering.

Among them, below average rainfall resulting in about a large reduction in hay produced on South West farms.

Understanding the implications of our drying climate has informed South West NRM's drought preparedness work over recent years.

The South West region is identified as a ‘global drying hotspot’ by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Since 1970, winter rainfall has declined up to 20%, river flows have plummeted and heatwaves spanning water and land have intensified.

The panel warns this will continue as emissions rise and the climate warms.

More information on South West NRM's drought preparation work is available on the website.