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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />to feel that. because of tne effect of climatic control o~ national defense and <br />interstate relations. state laH ...ill be subordin1?te to federal la>f in most instances <br />I.,herein the federal government chooses to assert its pONer. <br /> <br />The second. heading is the 'lO>ler of eminent domain. Under this a governmental aGency <br />may tal~e. use or dp.mege private property for a public our;>ose, even against the will <br />of the owner, provided it co~?ensates the o,'ner for any losses incurred by these <br />actions. It is ma.intained the,t under t!lis po"'er a governmental e.gency could author- <br />ize for itself the fu.~ction of weather control. This function might be exercised <br />either by means of its own facilities or through representa.tives, licensees or fran- <br />chise holders. That being true. any properly authorizec. pert". acting for a pro:?erly <br />deter!Dined public purpose could engage in artificial weather modification o!,erations <br />regardless of the objactions of any ~erson who feared injury or inconvenience as <br />the result. ~le injured party then could receive compeneetion from t!le gover~~ental <br />agency authorizing the operations to an amount deemed adequate by a duly constituted <br />court, or by another official bo~' acceptable to both sides of the controversy. <br /> <br />~ne third and final heading is the police oo~er. This has been defined by eminent <br />authority ao >,o,'er of regulation, designe.:i to iffi'!)ose uoon the o'.rner's \;.se end enjoJ'- <br />ment of property the duty to do so use end enjoy it as not to interfere with the <br />general ,"elf~re of the community in "hich loe lives. Such regulation may go to the <br />extreme of physical destruction of the property or some part of it or of such res- <br />triction on its use as greatly to reduca its velue. It is sometimes very difficult <br />to determine the line bshreen the power of e!Dinent dO!D8.in end the :?olice po>rer.' <br />This separation is extremely important beceuse many ections under the police power <br />Can be carried out ..ithout liability for pa.yment for de.mage. <br /> <br />Because er.erclse of polica DOHer can result in sacrifice of an individual to the <br />group, courts have tended to be strict in their comtel!lpl"tion of acts ..hich ".re <br />claimed to be in "ccordance 1'lith it. Yet they have psrreitted it to go be)'ond the <br />po,"er merely to regulate end !:eve exte:1cei it to the pONer to tp.ke and damage prop- <br />erty ,',henever this appeared necessary to r,lUblio health, safety 1?nd welfare. If such <br />ect remains entirely ,rithin the police po"er, in~ured parties neve no recourse. In <br />some cases public '.-'orks have been held to ce "'Hhin this power, though there is a <br />line of rulings that tends to re~,uire tr.at such >forks as "'ell as damage to la.>rful <br />',Jroperty be necessitate,l by emergen-:y conditions. It is not unreasonable to expect <br />thpt goverrunente.l agencies ma;\, claim i"'mu.'1it~' f!'om l1abili t~. for injury resulting <br />frc.::J \'.'e1?t:,er control operatior.s on the ground the.t these or,>erations ','ere within the <br />police power. <br /> <br />The foregoing discussion of legal a.spects was not presented >lith any idea. of set- <br />ting up adequate gucde p03tS thrOUGh a ma.e that is ba.ffling Our most learned ju!'ists. <br />Rether it ','a.s hoped first, to ShCI1 in 'brief p.nd generp-l ';erms '.,hat a')oears to be <br />the prevailing, but b;r no mear.s unanimous, thinking on the present l~gal sta.tus of <br />climate control eni second. to demonstrate the complexities with ,mich our courts <br />are confrontec'- because of this ne>' ci.eyelopment. It seeOlS to be pretty widely agreed <br />th.'>t the precedents embodied in existing la." Qrovide little better than generp.l <br />rules of thumb when a,??lied to this fiel~. There are no completely applicable legal <br />narec8dents and no definite authoritetive ~eiinitions to cover the pO\-lers, ri~~ts <br />-8'd lie.bilities of parties ,'rho >rUlfully interfere '.r1th the natural processes of the <br />pther. <br />....... <br />~stablishment of adequp.te rules in the absence of legislation probably would rest <br />upon a large nwnber of decisions ,.,hich have been h"nded do'm by the SUL:reme Court of <br />the United States over a period of several years. For that matter, a. certein amount <br />of ne'" legislatiGn also Hould have to run the geuntlet of the courts. j.:ore comrylex <br />e. r,>roblem even then the for"Julation of ,,".equate legal rules '.-lould be the determina- <br />tion of fact.' Until auantitative meesursments of the erratic >fea.ther manifestations <br /> <br />- 10 ~. <br />