The Chinese government intends to increase rainfall by 10
per cent by 2015 so it can increase crop yields, according to the nation’s new
five-year plan.
China says it has already increased rainfall by 50 billion
cubic metres and the goal for 2015 is to add another 230 billion cubic metres.
It does it by seeding clouds with silver iodide, using
either rockets or planes to seed the clouds.
It used the technology to clear smog over Beijing for the
2008 Olympics and it used cloud seeding this year to counter droughts in
central and eastern parts of the country where wheat was suffering.
China says rainfall in those drought areas was increased by
17 per cent.
Closer to home, there was controversy when U.S. farmers
tried to increase rainfall in the 1980s in Michigan and Wisconsin, but ended up
spoiling holiday beach weekends along the Canadian shores of Lake Huron.
There have also been reports that the U.S. has studied cloud
seeding as a rainfall-creating weapon.
