While rural areas around the nation reckon with federal cuts to weather information systems, Kitsap residents will see some new-and-improved coverage.
Kitsap Conservation District installed a new tower for its AgWeather System, a free broadcast that tracks real-time weather conditions and provides warnings for users about inclement weather events.
The system collects measurements using solar-powered sensors and provides real-time data on soil temperature, humidity, frost, wind speeds, snow accumulation, precipitation and ambient temperature. The new tower is three times the size of its previous iteration at 30 feet tall, and has additional soil probes for accurate readings.
It’s a critical resource for those whose livelihood is dependent on the land, like farmers, ranchers and natural resource managers, explained KCD project coordinator Diane Fish.
“The frost alert can be a lifesaver if you have plants that can’t take freezing temperatures, like tomatoes and peppers. Getting an alert and getting them covered with row cover or closing up a greenhouse can save a farmer big money in potential crop losses,” said Fish. “The snow accumulation alert is very important for growers with greenhouses. Western Washington snow is often very wet and heavy and can collapse a greenhouse. The alert gives you a chance to get snow off and save high tunnels and green houses if a storm arrives during the night.”
AgWeather Systems is part of a project to support orchards by Washington State University’s agriculture department. Kitsap joined the program in 2012 at the request of local farmers, explained KCD technical coordinator Brian Stahl.
In addition to preventing crop failures, AWS’s library of data takes some of the guesswork out of farming in the area, explained Fish. Historic weather information, such as soil temperature and when the first and last freezes of the year occurred in the past, can cue farmers in to the best time to plant crops and avoid pests.
“Degree days” in particular are an essential measurement for planning when to plant seeds and how conditions may vary year over year. Degree days refer to an accumulation of time, typically a 24-hour period, where conditions are consistently above a certain temperature.
For farmers, 50 and 70 degrees are common benchmarks, as they reflect the lower and upper limits of hardiness for many crops and mark the emergence of pests. But it’s not just planting; even some mitigation strategies depend on the correct weather conditions, Fish added.
“Right now, local farmers are seeing pressure from winter cutworm. The worms come out mid-September and munch their way through fall and winter crops. They can wipe out over-wintered greens in a matter of days! Vicious little buggers,” said Fish. “There are some soil treatments — specifically beneficial nematodes — that help control the cutworms. Basically, they get inside the cutworms and eat them from the inside out. Nematodes are sprayed on the soil, but they just die when the soil temperature is below 40 degrees. So, AWS provides real-time data on 2-inch and 8-inch soil temperature, which helps us with the timing to apply that particular biological pest control.”
When the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) slashed staffing at the National Weather Service (NWS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), emergency services like disaster alerts were hamstrung. Limited scope combined with weather events exacerbated by climate change has led to devastation in Los Angeles and Texas, and put communities in rural areas without backup services at risk.
While AWS is not designed for emergencies, its real-time barometric pressure readings can provide additional information to farmers during severe windstorms and other incoming bad weather. As people whose livelihood is tied to the weather and the land, farmers are acutely attuned to climate change, explained Fish.
“From our point of view, tracking changing weather trends over time with the data from the weather station confirms what we are seeing in the fields. Earlier, warmer springs, hotter, drier summers and changes in things like first and last frost days are subtle indications of climate change. Farmers are always paying attention to the weather,” said Fish. “However, responding to those changes really takes a coordinated response from all local communities. Farmers can respond to drought conditions by planting drought-resilient crops, adopting dry-farming techniques and conserve water with things like drip irrigation. Data is power! It informs decision-making and ideally should inform decision makers!”
