Farmers expected to face more wild weather

Farmers' operations can be affected by even the slightest change in weather conditions, so new predictions could mean it's more important than ever to take out farm insurance.

The Climate Council has observed that rising temperatures continue to affect the country, with last year proving to be the hottest on record.

This situation has continued into 2014, as the average temperature in April registered at 1.11 degrees C above the long-term average.

In light of this, the onset of wintry conditions has now been delayed and the Climate Council believes this could be a trend that continues year after year.

The 24-month period ending in April was the hottest two-year span on record, easily beating the previous highs seen in 2002-2004. Rising May temperatures could see this record exceeded once again.

Even last month there were some abnormal meteorological readings. Between May 8 and 26, a prolonged warm spell was registered as temperatures were up to 6 degrees C higher than usual.

Furthermore, it predicts that Australia could soon find itself experiencing an El Nino event, which has the potential to severely impact eastern and southern parts of the continent.

Although the specific effects of an El Nino event tend to vary, they usually lead to a decline in rainfall across the eastern part of the country, which could no doubt cause problems for farmers in these areas.

The Climate Council acknowledged that if the winter months of the year become warmer, Australia also runs the risk of its bush fire season being extended, as well as drought conditions.

Although it's not entirely possible to accurately predict the effects of climate change, this data indicates that Australia is already facing the threat of rising temperatures.

The agricultural sector can help mitigate the effects of this by making sure they have crop insurance and other types of cover in place.