The Central Weather Bureau on Monday said that it is planning to implement a low-temperature alert system as extreme variations in temperature become more frequent with climate change.
Climate change would bring rising average temperatures and colder extremes, Forecast Center Director Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) said, adding that 2016 set the record for the hottest year in Taiwan, but also had a four-day cold spell of 10°C that wreaked havoc on farms and fisheries.
The bureau currently issues a cold weather alert when it expects the temperature to drop to 10° or below — a system that inadequately informs the public about the severity of the weather, he said.
While the mercury reading taken on a cold morning and during a cold front could be identical, the severity of the effects could differ, he added.
The low-temperature alert system would be color-coded, with yellow for a low of 10°C, orange for a low of 6°C and red for more than 24 hours of minus-6°C, Lu said.
As drops in temperature tend to occur late at night or early in the morning, the bureau would issue the alerts in the morning before a forecast drop in temperature, which should help communities prepare, he said.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications has been informed of the bureau’s plans, and discussions with county and municipal governments are ongoing, he said, adding that the new system could become operational in November at the earliest.
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