Drought eases in South Australia, Tasmania but worse in Victoria

THE drought has eased in parts of Tasmania and South Australia but gotten worse in western Victoria.

In this Monday, June 1, 2015 photo, Brandon Amos with JW Landscape zips around on a Bobcat loader as he pulls up the grass at Suzuki headquarters in Brea, Calif. The company will be installing drought-tolerant plants, saving an estimated 700,000 gallons of water a month, said R.F. Taitano, administrative services manager. California cities and businesses have been ordered to reduce water use by 25 percent, because of the drought. (Mindy Schauer/The Orange County Register via AP)

MAY rain has eased drought in parts of Tasmania and South Australia but there’s no improvement in eastern states and it’s tightening its grip in western Victoria.

The Bureau of Meteorology’s latest drought statement revealed rain was above average in northern South Australia, western NSW, western Tasmania and the Pilbara region in Western Australia in May.

But rainfall has been below average for the past 11 months in southeastern South Australia and western Victoria.

Serious or severe rainfall deficiencies (rainfall of less than 10 per cent or five per cent of the long-term average respectively) have been widespread in inland Queensland, northern NSW and western Victoria going back two to three years.