Deakin starts its pollen watch

VICTORIANS will for the first time receive thunderstorm asthma alerts via the Bureau of Meteorology thanks to data from Deakin University’s annual AIRwatch pollen count, which began on Sunday.

The AIRwatch team, from Deakin’s of School of Life and Environmental Sciences, are working with the bureau to provide the forecast, aimed at preventing a repeat of last year’s deadly thunderstorm asthma event.

This work has been boosted by $220,000 in state government funding over the next three years, with Health Minister Jill Hennessy launching the new monitoring, prediction and alert system in Melbourne.

AIRwatch collects data from pollen traps set up at Deakin University campuses in Geelong and Burwood, offering asthma and hay fever sufferers accurate forecasts of allergen risk.

Head of Deakin AIRwatch Associate Professor Cenk Suphioglu said October 1 marked the official start of hay fever season, with the pollen count continuing until December 31.

This year, the data will also be fed to the Bureau of Meteorology along with five new pollen counts in hamilton, Creswick, Bendigo, Dookie and Churchill, funded by the government following last year’s thunderstorm asthma event, and another existing one at the University of Melbourne in Parkville.

“The bureau will use this information to calculate an epidemic thunderstorm asthma risk forecast, which they can then use to issue warnings when required,” Associate Professor Suphioglu said.

“This is an extremely sensible, effective and efficient system, as this phenomenon doesn’t just rely on pollen but also on extreme weather events. So the Bureau will marry our data with theirs to produce a low, moderate or high thunderstorm asthma alert.”

He said the greatest risk of a thunderstorm asthma event in Victoria was in mid-November and encouraged Geelong and Melbourne residents to keep a close eye on the AIRwatch website, but said those with grass pollen allergies should also ensure they had an asthma management plan.

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