Data Sources and Quality

1.5.3 Vessel Ventilation

HS Version 2.1 has no allowance for air jetting or variation of ventilation along a deck. More importantly, the vessel ventilation data in HS Version 2.1 remain largely unaudited. We recommend that all vessels on the trade be subject to ventilation surveys to verify or amend PAT data which are central to risk assessment. Jetting assessment is more problematic. We now take the view that the air flows to give the necessary pen air turnover will be sufficient to give effective jetting and general circulation over animal areas. Lack of jetting will be correlated with low PAT. If the input risk data are appropriately taken as relevant to pens with jetting, then the method may only be criticised for not applying a ‘de-rating’ to areas with no jetting and only a general drift velocity. Such a de-rating could be included later if required as provision has been made in the software data structure. 2 Weather The key weather influences on the live export trade, notably the detailed seasonal variations of wet bulb temperature climatologies, are described in the following sections. Section 2.1 focuses on the weather experienced in the nine key Middle Eastern ports of disembarkation. Section 2.2 looks at the voyage weather covering the oceanic areas ranging from the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. Section 2.4 provides an overview of the wet bulb climatology of the Australian ports of departure.

2.1 Middle East Weather

2.1.1 Data Sources and Quality

Temperature and humidity data from the last six years 1997 to 2002 inclusive were obtained from the national meteorological service of each country’s official meteorological observing stations close to eight major ports in the Persian Gulf and Red Sea. The ports selected are destination ports for the live cattle, sheep and goat trade out of Australia. The data were collated and mean daily wet bulb temperatures calculated from the original dry bulb temperature and dew point data. The data originate from the international airport-based observation stations closest to the ports of offloading. Although these data are considered accurate in their own right, the stations are all slightly inland and hence a degree of caution needs to be exercised in applying these data to the port locations. It is probable that coastal wet bulb values are equal to or slightly higher than indicated by the probability distributions presented in this report. With the highest wet bulb temperatures at both sites being associated with gentle onshore air movement, it is likely that distributions are fairly accurate at the high wet bulb temperature end. Until such time as high quality temperature and humidity data can be sourced from within the ports themselves, the airport-based information is the best available. The instrumentation at the airports selected should be subject to regular maintenance and calibration in order to meet the rigid requirements for accuracy and reliability stipulated by the International Civil Aviation Organisation ICAO and the World Meteorological Organisation WMO. Hence the data are regarded as being of high quality. Inspection of the data during the analysis did not reveal any systematic bias or any of several errors that can be detected from standard data analysis techniques. The only data outliers found were for very dry conditions and these were considered to be meteorologically possible given the location of the observation stations. Project: LIVE.116 – Development of a Heat Stress Risk Management Model Revision F Maunsell Australia Pty Ltd Page 13 of 129 Final Report December 2003

2.1.2 General Temperature Observations