Science, and transportation united states senate

group of counties, supported by local taxes and/or voluntary contribu-

tions.

Specific examples of local projects and sponsors are included in

in the latter part of this chapter. In particular, table 13, listing indi-

vidual projects for the water year 1977 (October 1, 1976 through

September 30, 1977) in California shows the variety of sponsors,

public and private, found in that State, which has both the greatest

number of sponsors and projects in the country. Tables 16 and 17

provide similar information for calendar years 1975 and 1976 for

projects in the three- State area of North and South Dakota and Min-

nesota in the upper Middle West.

Weather Modification Activities in Particular States

Since each of the States is somewhat different from the others in the

extent and the diversity of involvement in weather modification, it is

difficult to give a full account of activities by the several States. The

list of individuals in the respective States, referred to in a previous

section and found in appendix E, can be used to acquire detailed, cur-

See pp. 345 and 347.

352

rent information on activities within a particular State. In addition,

zational structures, regulatory activities, and operational and research

programs within States, some case examples of particular States are

discussed in the following sections. The cases were selected on the basis

of both availability of information and the variety of State activities.

The States discussed are California, Illinois, Kansas, North Dakota.

South Dakota, Utah, and Washington.

CALIFORNIA

State weather modification law and regulations

The California statute both encourages the development of weather

modification technology and recognizes the need to regulate its

practice. Chapter four of the State water code, entitled "Regulation of

Rain-making and Rain-prevention," passed in 1953, states that:

The public interest, health, safety, welfare, and necessity require that scientific

experimentation in the field of artificial nucleation, and that scientific efforts to

develop, increase, and regulate natural precipitation be encouraged, and that

means be provided for the regulation and control of interference by artificial

means with natural precipitation of rain, snow, moisture, or water in any form

contained in the atmosphere, within the State, in order to develop, conserve, and

protect the natural water resources of the State and to safeguard life and prop-

erty. 50

The California Department of Water Resources is the agency re-

sponsible for carrying out the provisions of the water code related to

weather modification. The law itself expresses in some detail the means

by which the regulations are to be administered. Licenses are required

and must be obtained from the department of water resources, each

application requiring specific information on the education, experience,

and other qualifications of the individual or persons in control of and

charged with the operations. Data required with each application

includes :

The previous education, experience, and qualifications of the

applicant, or, if the applicant is other than an individual, the

previous education, experience, and qualifications of the persons

who will be in control of and charged with the operations of the

applicant ;

A general description of the operations which the applicant in-

tends to conduct and the method and type of equipment the appli-

cant proposes to use ; and

Such other information as the department may require. 51

Licenses are effective for a calendar year unless revoked or sus-

pended and may be renewed annually. Prior to undertaking any oper-

ation authorized by the license, under normal circumstances a notice

of intention to perform a weather modification project must be filed

with the Department of Water Resources and shall Ix* published in a

newspaper having a general circulation and published within the

county, or in each of the counties, in which the operations are to be

* California Water Code. sec. 400. (The California weather modification law is reproduced

in entirety in app. I), p. 516.)

" Ibid., sec. 403.

353

publication shall be in a newspaper with a general circulation within

that county. Published notices must include information on the nature

and object of intended operations, the person or persons on whose

behalf the project is to be performed, the area and approximate times

for conduct of the operations, and the area which may be affected by

the project to the extent that such area can be determined in advance. 52

The requirement for published advance notification may be waived

in an emergency situation if the operations appear to the depart-

ment to be desirable in aiding extinguishment of fires. Furthermore,

at the request of the board of supervisors of a county or of the govern-

ing body of a city or a public district in the State, the department may

also grant a licensee permission to undertake seeding to alleviate a

drought emergency, without prior compliance with the need for pub-

lication of intent; however, the licensee must publish such notice as

soon as practicable after the granting of permission for emergency

seeding.

Licensees are required to maintain records of all operations, show-

ing the method and equipment used, times and places of operations,

and the names and addresses of all persons participating and assist-

ing in the operations. Immediately following completion of each

operation a report is to be filed. An evaluation statement for each

operation, including estimated precipitation gain or loss occurring

from the seeding activities and other supporting data, is to be pre-

pared and maintained by the operator, and it is to be submitted to

the department upon request. 53

Weather modification projects

Cloud-seeding projects have been underway in California since the

late 1940's, and some projects sponsored by utility companies have

been continuous since the 1950's. Some operations are carried out dur-

ing the winter season to increase winter snowpack, whose runoff is

used for hydroelectric power generation and to augment water sup-

plies. Other projects are designed to increase summer rainfall for a

variety of water needs and for fighting forest fires.

Fifteen weather modification licenses were issued in California

during calendar vear 1977, and 14 projects were conducted within the

1977 water year/October 1, 1976 through September 30, 1977. 54 Table

13 shows the projects active in the State during this period along with

licensed operators who were inactive during that year. Projects in the

table with an "E" following the project number were emergency pro-

grams, which nearly doubled the customary number of annual proj-

ects. The variety of public and private clients sponsoring opera-

tional projects in the State is seen in the fourth column. Note that,

while most of the licensees in the third column are commercial cloud-

seeding firms, other licenses are granted to some clients who provide

their own services and one license was given to a university research

group for participation in a research project of a U.S. Federal agency.

52 Ibid., sees. 402-410.

53 Ibid., sees. 411-412.

54 State of California, the Resources Agency. Department of Water Resources, Weather

Modification Activities in California ; Oct. 1, 1976 to Sept. 30, 1977.

354

[From California Department of Water Resources, 1977]

Project No.

License

Client

1-77-1.

21-77-1

21-77-3(E)..

21-77-4(E).._

21-77-5(E).

21-77-6(E)_

22- 77-1.

23- 77-1.

23-77-2.

26-77-1.

34-77-1.

44-77 1(E).

North American Weather Con

suHants.

Santa Barbara Municipal Air

port, Goleta, Calif.

North American Weather Con

sultants.

Southern

Co.

California Edison

watershed.

Joaquin River

Atmospherics, Inc

Calif.

Fresno,

Nevada Irrigation District in

cooperation with Pacific

Gas & Electric Co.

Kings River Conservation

District.

do Kaweah Delta Water Conser-

vation District.

Yolo County Flood Control

and Water Conservation

District, Lake County,

Sonoma County, Mendocino

County, and Pacific Gas &

Electric Co., Yolo County,

Solano County Flood Con-

trol and Water Conserva-

tion District.

.do Los Angeles Department of

Water and Power.

21 do Kern County

21 do.. Desert Research Institute,

University of Nevada.

22

23

43

ipal Water District, San

Bernardino, Calif.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co., San

Francisco, Calif.

..do

ipal Water District.

Upper Middle Yuba River and

north side South Yuba River

above Spaulding Dam.

Upper Kings River watershed.

Kaweah River watershed.

Clear Lake, Indian Valley

Reservoir watersheds in

Lake County and added later

portions of Mendocino

County and that portion of

the Eel River drainage in

Lake County to all of that

county. Portions of Yolo

County and the watershed

above Lake Berryessa in

Napa County.

East slopes of the Sierra from

southwest of Lone Pine to

the southern portions of

Mono Basin.

Kern River above Isabella Dam.

Higher elevations of Tahoe

Basin and the Walker River

drainage basin.

Upper Santa Ana watershed.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co Lake Almanor drainage basin.

.do.

Santa Clara Valley Water Dis-

Envaids Inc., Stockton, Calif..

Desert Research Institute En-

ergy and Atmospheric En-

vironmental Center, Uni-

versity of Nevada System,

Reno, Nev.

Sacramento Municipal Utility

District, Sacramento, Calif.

Joe Warburton, Desert Re-

search Institute, Reno, Nev.

Marin Municipal Water Dis-

trict, Corte Madera, Calif.

Institute of Earth, Planetary

and Life Sciences, Los An-

geles, Calif.

University of Washington,

Department of Atmospheric

Science, Seattle, Wash.

Weather Modification, Inc.,

Bowman, N. Dak.

45 Mr. Jack VanZandt, Teha-

chapi, Calif.

46 Weather Consultants, Inc.

Santa Barbara, Calif.

Santa Clara Valley Water Dis-

trict.

Licensee inactive this year...

Sacramento Municipal Utility

District.

Licensee inactive this year

[see 21-77-6(E)[.

Licensee inactive this year

.do.

Transport and diffusion stud-

lamation.

California Department of

Water Resources.

Licensee inactive this year..

do.

shed.

None.

Upper American River.

ISee 21-77-6CE).]

None.

American River Basin.

Summer cumulus program in

the mountains and uplands

of Mendocino County and

Mariposa County northward.

For a short period operations

were also carried out over

the Kern River drainage.

None.

355

Figure 3. — California weather modification target areas, Oct. 1, 1976, through

Sept. 30, 1977. "E" following project number indicates emergency project.

(From California Department of Water Resources, 1977.)

The target areas, showing the area of the State covered by weather

modification projects during the 1977 water year, are shown on the

map in figure 3. For comparison, the relatively smaller areas of the

State covered in the two preceding years — October 1974 through Sep-

tember 1975 and October 1975 through September 1976 — are shown

in figure 4. The influence of the recent 1976-77 drought and attempts

to mitigate it through emergency cloud seeding account for the dra-

matically increased coverage for the reporting year ending Septem-

ber 1977. Seven projects were conducted during each of these 2 earlier

years, compared with 14 in 1976-77. 35

53 State of California, the Resources Agency. Department of Water Resources. Weather

Modification Activities in California ; Oct. 1, 1974, to Sept. 30, 1975 ; and Oct. 1, 197o to

Sept. 30, 1976.

356

In July 1977, the State of California initiated its own emergency

cloud-seeding program, intended to alleviate drought conditions.

Weather Modification, Inc., of Bowman, N. Dak., was awarded a con-

tract with the Department of Water Resources, who were themselves

the client in this first operational weather modification project ever

to be funded by the State (see project No. 44r-77-l(E) in table 13).

Seeding was carried out in the Kern River watershed and over a wide

swath of the State extending from the Merced River north to the Ore-

gon border. Objectives of the program were to reduce fire danger and

to augment dwindling water supplies in drought-stricken northern

counties of the State. 50 This summer emergency seeding was totally

supported by State funds.

56 Alexander. George, "State Seeks To Wring Rain From Clouds," Los Angeles Times,

July 2, 1977, pt. 1, pp. 1, 17.

357

California for (a) water year 1975 (Oct. 1, 1974, through Sept. 30, 1975), and

(b) water year 1976 (Oct. 1, 1975, through Sept. 30, 1976). (From California

Department of Water Resources, 1975 and 1976.)

Under the Drought Emergency Act of 1977, the State received $300,-

000 in grants from the Bureau of Keclamation of the U.S. Department

of the Interior. 57 A winter emergency weather modification program

has been initiated by the State, supported by these funds. Since the

winter project was initiated since October 1, 1977, it is not included in

57 See chapter 5, p. 266.

358

the projects listed in table 13 or shown in figure 3. The contractor for

funds from the Bureau of Reclamation are also supporting two weather

modification studies, one on the development of operational criteria

and the other on project evaluation. 58

ILLINOIS

Illinois is an example of a Midwestern State in which there has

been a high degree of interest in weather modification, particularly

with regard to potential benefits to agriculture from increased rain-

fall and from decreased hail damage. The State does not finance

weather modification operations, but does encourage such activities,

supported through local private funding. The Illinois law, recently

passed in 1073. is concerned essentially with regulation of operations:

however, it is positive in that it fosters weather modification, with

proper controls and protection guarantees. The Illinois State water

survey has led in endorsing and in evaluating properly conducted

weather modification operations in the State and has a record of promi-

nent and extensive activity across a broad spectrum of weather modi-

fication research activities.

Illinois iceather modification, law and its administration

The Illinois State water survey initiated efforts in 1971 to develop

and secure a State law that would both permit and regulate weather

modification activities in Illinois. There was no previous law and such

a law was considered to be essential not only to insure proper execution

of weather modification experiments in the State but also ". . . for the

general benefit of citizens of Illinois through encouragement to prop-

erly conducted activities and protection from improperly conducted

weather modification operations." 59

Efforts thus begun in October 1971 were completed in September

1073 with enactment of the Illinois weather modification control bill

and its accompanying appropriation bill. It was intended to be a

"model" law, reflecting the best aspects of similar legislation in other

States and serving as a model for future legislation in other States. 00, 61

Witti objectives of encouraging weather modification operations and

research and of minimizing possible adverse effects of such activities,

the Illinois Weather Modification Control Act contains three types

of provisions :

1. It establishes an institutional structure to deal with regula-

tion of cloud seeding activities ;

2. It contains substantive regulatory provisions controlling in-

tentional atmospheric manipulation in the State: and

3. It establishes basic rules of procedure according to which the

regulatory provisions will be enforced. 02

The Illinois law is merely regulatory and does not authorize a State

government agency to carry out weather modification operations. In

68 Finlayson, Donald J., private communication.

" ; * Aekerman. William C., Stanley A. Changnori, Jr., and Ray Jay Davis. "The New

Weather Modification l-aw for Illinois. ' Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society,

vol. 55, No. 7, July 1974, p. 745.

60 Ibid.

61 The Illinois law (111. Ann. Stat. Oh. 140 3/4, § 1-32) in its entirety is found along with

those of other States in app. D. pp. 533 to 541.

*'■- Ackerman, Changnon, and Davis, "The New Weather Modification Law for Illinois,"

1974, p. 747.

359

entities are involved:

1. The weather modification board is composed of five Illinois resi-

dents, appointed by the director of the department of registration and

education, who have qualifications and practical experience in agri-

culture, law, meteorology, and water resources. The board meets an-

ually and at such times and places it determines. The director of the

department of registration and education can exercise his regulatory

authority only upon recommendation in a written report from the

majority of the members of the board.

2. The department of registration and education, working through

advisory groups like the weather modification board, supervises most

of the professional licensing in Illinois. All formal documents required

by the Weather Modification Control Act are issued by the depart-

ment.

3. The State courts are part of the institutional structure in that per-

judicial review of final administrative decisions of the department of

registration and education. The department may also seek a writ of in-

junction to restrain repetitious violations of the act. 63

Regulatory provisions of the Illinois law prohibit a person's en-

gaging in weather modification activities (a) without both a profes-

sional weather modification license and a weather modification permit

for a specific project or (b) in violation of any term, condition, or limi-

tation of such license and permit. Some activities may be exempted

from license and permit requirements by administrative regulation.

Such exemptions are granted for research activities and for fire, frost,

or fog protection, so long as the exempted activities do not interfere

with operations conducted by permit. 64 The rules of procedure, estab-

lished by the weather modification board and the department of regis-

tration and education are found in appendix M of this report. Under

these procedures One permit was granted in 1976 for a rain enhance-

ment project, and three were granted in 1977. 65

Operational projects

The first permit for weather modification operations under the

Illinois law was obtained by a group of farmers and other interested

businessmen, called Rain, Inc., who contracted for cloud seeding serv-

ices in a five-county area in the southern part of the State. This area

was centered in Colt County, about 45 miles south of the Champaign-

Urbana area. This cooperative voluntary- funded organization initiated

an aircraft seeding program in July 1976. The program was renewed in

1977 ; however, there seemed to be less interest the second season owing

to less critical rainfall shortages. Evaluation of 1976 results by the Illi-

nois State Water Survey showed that there was an estimated*12- to 50-

percent rainfall increase. 66

Another group of farmers from McLean County in north central

Illinois, organized as Rain Gain. Inc.. was formed in June 1977. and

contracted for weather modification operations, which began July 12.

AU1U.

85 Posse, E. Ray. member of Illinois weather modification board. Briefing before U.S. De-

1977.

merce Weather Modification Advisory Board, Champaign. 111., Oct. 13, 1977.

360

Rains were heavy during July, and the operations were stopped on

per acre. There is a present attempt, along with the State water

survey, to evaluate results of the seeding, and the group is contemplat-

ing a second season of operations in 1978. 67