Financing, Operating Models, and Regulatory Frameworks
weather and water warnings. Or such warnings may be ignored as having no authority, may be contradicted with impunity by commercial weather services, or may not even be issued at all. Actions are not taken that could have protected civil society, and disasters that could have been prevented happen anyway. Although meteorological laws are generally country specific, a number of commonalities and best practices can be identified by critiquing a few:8 • In 1955, Australia was one of the first countries to enact a meteorological law. The law governed the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM), outlining its functions, powers, charges, and regulations. The BOM had the additional responsibility of collecting and analyzing hydrological data through the 2007 Water Act. • In the United States, the 2005 National Weather Services Duties Act states that the NWS’s responsibility is to protect life and property by (a) preparing and issuing severe weather forecasts and warnings designed to protect the lives and property of the general public; (b) preparing and issuing hydrometeorological guidance and core forecast information; (c) collecting and exchanging meteorological, hydrological, climate, and oceanographic data and information; and (d) providing reports, forecasts, warnings, and other advice to the secretary of transportation. The law explicitly forbids the NWS from competing with the private sector. • In the United Kingdom, the Met Office’s activities are defined in the Government Trading Funds Act 1973 as amended and the Meteorological Office Trading Fund Order 1996 and subsequent amendments.9 In contrast to U.S. law, these acts are explicit about the NMS’s achieving a return on investment through commercial services. A similar legal framework exists in Tanzania (Gray 2012). Other countries have also focused on revenue. In Nepal, the government requires all public agencies to sell data and services among the government departments, whereas the Ministry of Finance retains all of the revenue. • In China, the Meteorology Law states the China Meteorological Administration’s responsibilities. The State Council has also issued regulations for meteorological hazards and warnings. Each agency knows its role and responsibilities at all levels of government, which helps ensure that proper actions are taken in response to a warning. Punitive provisions are included in these regulations for people who issue severe-weather alerts in violation of the law (as is done in the Republic of Korea). • In the Republic of Korea, the Weather Act also defines the responsibilities of the Korea Aviation Meteorological Agency, a subsidiary of the wholly publicly funded Korea Meteorological Administration. The act states that the agency “may engage in any profitable business related to aviation meteorological services, as prescribed by Presidential Decree.” The Weather Industry Promotion Act10 of Korea gives the Korea Meteorological Administration Weather and Climate Resilience • http://dx.doi.org/10.1596/978-1-4648-0026-9
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