Cloud seeding is a process where chemicals like silver iodide are released into clouds to induce precipitation. While cloud seeding can increase water supply and help regulate weather, allowing for more crop growth and airport use, it also poses risks. The chemicals used may be harmful to the environment if their long term effects aren't understood. More research is needed into cloud seeding chemicals and why some clouds don't produce precipitation naturally to better address environmental impacts and prevent droughts.

1. THE NEGATIVES OF CLOUD SEEDING AND WHY YOU SHOULD CARE
TRIM RIZVANOLLI
Figure #1: Cumulus Clouds

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Cloud Seeding
a. The Process
b. The Benefits
c. The Risks
3. Conclusion/Solutions
4. References

3. Introduction
The topic that I chose to center my paper around is the process of cloud
seeding. I chose cloud seeding to be the topic that I write about because the book I
chose for this class was the one about clouds. I picked that book because clouds
have always interested me. They can be pretty when the sun is setting when they
become orange and purple, but they also help us. Something that needs to be
explained right off the bat is what clouds are made up of and how they work. Tiny
drops of water or little ice crystals are the particles that form clouds. Water vapor
cools and condenses in the atmosphere, which creates these particles, and there
cannot be any precipitation, such as rain and snow when a cloud doesn’t have both
of them (What is Cloud Seeding? Desert Research Institute). As rain and snow are
crucial, that is where cloud seeding comes into play. Cloud seeding is when
condensation nuclei are artificially put into the atmosphere to make precipitation
happen; while doing this does have some benefits, there can also be detrimental
effects (What is Cloud Seeding? Desert Research Institute). Throughout this paper,
I will be explaining how cloud seeding works, the risks and benefits of doing so,
and any potential solutions.
Cloud Seeding
The Process
There are two different ways to conduct and complete the process of cloud
seeding. There are ways to carry out the process from the ground or by using
aircraft. The Desert Research Institute, or DRI for short, uses both ground-based
generators and seeding aircraft to place the particles that clouds need into the
atmosphere. All of it is a part of their Cloud Seeding Research Program (What is
Cloud Seeding? Desert Research Institute). Now, you might be wondering how
they make the particles they distribute into the atmosphere. Well, they use silver
iodide to make the ice crystals, but this is controversial. The DRI claims that silver
iodide is natural and perfectly safe; however, no one has conducted an informative
study on whether or not the materials used during cloud seeding are safe for the
human population. The iodide is released into the atmosphere by the DRI for
clouds to be able to use. Cloud seeding is a specific process, as it can only happen

4. when the clouds in the sky have moisture inside them. If there are no such clouds
present, cloud seeding is unable to work. That's why cloud seeding is only done
during the months when storms are common, such as in the spring or summer
(What is Cloud Seeding? Desert Research Institute).
Figure #2: The Process of Cloud Seeding
The Benefits
Firstly, I will be talking about the positives of cloud seeding. As I mentioned
in the introduction, cloud seeding raises the rate of precipitation, which increases
the world's natural water supply, which has numerous benefits. For one, the land
becomes more saturated and suitable for living, which is great for farmers who rely
on their crops to make money and put food on the table. More crops from farmers
can also benefit the economy. Increased precipitation also prevents a drought,
which is very detrimental to farmers and the economy (Miller 17 Advantages and
Disadvantages of Cloud Seeding). The process of cloud seeding can also help
regulate weather patterns around the world. Planes carrying passengers at airports
can't take off from the runway when there are bad weather conditions. It is most

5. commonly the case in the winter when snow and freezing rain are normality, even
more so in the northern states of the U.S. To help during these times, airports will
conduct cloud seeding to improve the weather conditions so that passenger planes
are able to take off and so that the pilots flying them have a better field of vision
(Miller 17 Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud Seeding). That is not all that
you can do with it, however. People also use cloud seeding to do almost the exact
opposite thing. When the conditions are just right for any form of precipitation,
whether it's rain or snow, people will use cloud seeding to make sure they get as
much of it as possible (Miller 17 Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud
Seeding). Doing this will lead to the benefits which I mentioned at the beginning of
this paragraph.
The Risks
Unfortunately, there are also several risks of cloud seeding, which is why I
say that you should care. First of all, as I mentioned before, cloud seeding is a
specific process. You can only conduct cloud seeding when the clouds in the sky
are holding moisture. If there are no such clouds present, then you are out of luck.
Secondly, cloud seeding requires the use of chemicals (Rinkesh Various Pros and
Cons of Cloud Seeding). As I mentioned before, the DRI uses silver iodide while
conducting cloud seeding. However, people also use solid carbon dioxide and
liquid propane during the process. These things can be harmful to the environment
once distributed into the atmosphere. Next, cloud seeding is not a one hundred
percent effective plan. Clouds can look like they're going to produce rain, but once
they receive the nuclei from cloud seeding, there is no result whatsoever. Also, the
particles used during cloud seeding can be affected. If an aircraft delivers the
particles to the atmosphere or a cloud, the wind can come along and blow it all
away, and that makes the whole thing a waste of time (Rinkesh Various Pros and
Cons of Cloud Seeding). There is also more pressure on us when we realize that
cloud seeding is an expensive endeavor, and it can be a waste of money if things
start going wrong (Rinkesh Various Pros and Cons of Cloud Seeding). Lastly, no
one has any idea what long-term exposure to cloud seeding entails. The silver
iodide concentration from cloud seeding could potentially negatively affect nature
all around us, some of which we rely on, like crops.

6. Conclusion/Solutions
In my opinion, cloud seeding is a touchy subject when we talk about its
impact on the world. Firstly, it can be a good thing when it is effective in usage. It
can increase the rate of precipitation, which, as I mentioned before, has several
benefits. Farmers can grow more crops, and pilots can take off from runways more
than not. However, you always have to address the elephant in the room, and it's
the effect of cloud seeding on the environment. Cloud seeding requires the use of
chemicals, and we are unsure as to what the long-term exposure to these chemicals
will lead to in the future. In my opinion, there are ways that we can solve this
problem, for sure. We could dedicate more timing to the research of the chemicals
we are putting in the atmosphere. That will allow us to find out how these
chemicals affect humans and a look into the consequences of long-term exposure
to them. That might cost some money, but doing the research is more worthy of the
money as it will potentially save lives. Also, we could do deep research on why
some of the clouds do not have the particles they need and why they are not
producing precipitation. For example, there might be an environmental factor that
is unaware to us humans. That can potentially give us insight into different ways
that we can prevent droughts from happening in the future.

7. References
● Miller, Keith. “17 Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud Seeding.”
FutureofWorking.com, 7 Oct. 2019, futureofworking.com/8-advantages-and-
disadvantages-of-cloud-seeding/.
● Rinkesh. “Various Pros and Cons of Cloud Seeding.” Conserve Energy
Future, www.conserve-energy-future.com/pros-cons-of-cloud-seeding.php.
● “What Is Cloud Seeding?” DRI, 30 Dec. 2019, www.dri.edu/cloud-seeding-
program/what-is-cloud-seeding/.