Met station may close

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 241, 26 April 1988, Page 1

Met station may close

By

Alan

wood

Waiouru weather station's existence is in peril because of government cost-cutting. The director of the New Zealand Meteorological Service will decide on its future in the

next six months, says the station's sole operator, Mr John Standish. Mr Standish says farmers and pilots use the service a lot as well as skiers wanting to know about snow conditions. Pilots want to know

visibility conditions and the height of the cloud base for the corridor they must follow when flying through the central North Island. "The Desert Road region has its fair share of low cloud and bad

visibility," says Mr Standish. "I don't think automatic weather-recording instruments will be able to replace the skills of a forecaster in Waiouru. "Instruments can't tell you the height of the

could base or visibility conditions." The station is the smallest in New Zealand and only one whose existence is threatened, he says, but some services by other stations may also be. Turnpage2

Met station From page 1 cut back. "I will feel sorry for regular met service customers if we lose the Waiouru station." He says the Meteorological Service has been told to recover 40% of its operating costs. "This means either cutting back services or, increasing revenue from the services." Discussion on the future of the Waiouru station will be held between the national director, Mr John Hickman, and representatives of the army and air force. "We have had a happy working relationship with the army for over 25 years and it would be sad to lose this," Mr Standish says.