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Last modified
7/28/2009 2:27:39 PM
Creation date
10/1/2006 2:12:02 PM
Metadata
Fields
Template:
Weather Modification
Applicant
Steven M. Hunter
Sponsor Name
California Energy Commission
Project Name
Optimizing Cloud Seeding for Water and Energy in California
Title
Optimizing Cloud Seeding for Water and Energy in California
Prepared For
California Energy Commission
Prepared By
Steven M. Hunter
Date
3/31/2006
State
CA
Country
United States
Weather Modification - Doc Type
Report
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<br />than industry emissions into thc atmosphere in many parts of the country or individual exposure <br />from tooth fillings. Accumulations in the soil, vegetation, and surface runoff have not been large <br />enough to measure above natural background45. A 2004 sludy for Snowy Hydro Limited in <br />Australia confirmed these earlier findings. The expansion of liquid propane (LP) as a gas is <br />another possible seeding method. Regarding the l1ammability of propane released from <br />dispensers';l>, it was shown that it was necessary to bring the ignition source to ,vithin four feet of <br />the dispenser nozzle to cause the propane plume to bum under very light winds. A modest <br />increase in ,'...ind speed would blowout the l1ame. It was further noted that, "Propane is a <br />colorless, odorless, hydrocarbon that is harmless to plant and animal life. The quantities used in <br />seeding arc so small, 0.75 Ib per minute from each dispenser, that there is no accumulation <br />leading to a pollution problem." Another study41 noted that "There is a great deal of propane <br />(CJlIg) and butane (C4111O), another hydrocarbon, being released by human activities al a scale <br />far larger than for propane seeding. Propane docs not present an cnvironmental ha7.ard bccausc <br />of its rapid oxidative degradation. Although technically a greenhouse gas, its approximate one <br />month lifetime in the atmosphere is too short 10 function in this manner. In contrast, CFCs have <br />atmospheric lifetimes in the range of60 - 500 yrs." <br /> <br />As for concern 3), the SCPP Environmental Assessmcnt report4J investigated thc impacts of an <br />assumed ,,,'cather moditication-induccd precipitation increasc of 5 - 7.5% on weathcr elements, <br />hydrologic and physiographic phenomena, plant and animal communities, the human <br />environment, and land and ,,'ater rcsource use. The report concluded that there would be no <br />significant impact on these environmental sectors, The perccntage increases from '....eather <br />modification are much smaller than inter~annual variability of natural precipitation. <br />Furthermore. all California operating projects have suspension criteria dcsigned to stop cloud <br />seeding anytime there is a 1100d threat. All projects employ metcorologists who monitor current <br />and projected weather conditions. Additionally. water management personnel from sponsoring <br />companies mnnitor streamflow and reservoir storage. The combined interdisciplinary inputs <br />about flood potential are considered. and conditions are compared against suspension criteria in <br />advance of any potcntial l1ood-producing storms. Moreover. the types of stonns that produce <br />floods in Califomia are almost always too warnl for effective silver iodide seeding (Byron <br />l\.larler, personal communication), Although weather modification increases are small compared <br />to natural precipitation variability, one can anticipate some concerns about snow removal from <br />roads and snow loading on roofs. <br /> <br />Finally, some have questioned the notion of "interfering with nature" through weather <br />modification. These questions onen ignore the fact that human acti,itles have caused <br />inadl'ertenl weather modification for many centuries. The NRC reportl2 states that "there is <br />ample evidence that inadvertent wcather and global climate moditication (e,g.. greenhollse gases <br />alTccting global temperatures and anthropogcnic aerosols afTecting cloud properties) is a reality." <br />Evcn the simple act of cultivating a farm lield will alter local climate. 111Ienliona! weather <br />modification, particularly of the fornl practiced in winter seeding, alters the environment tar less <br />than the accumulated etlccts of inad\'erlem weather moditication. Indeed. cloud seeding in <br />C'a\lfornia m~y h~ve been partially c.ompen~ti~f for precipitation losses from the inadvcrtcnt <br />weather modification brought on by aIr pollutlonh. <br /> <br />17 <br />
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