Silver iodide
(AgI), a chemical made up of silver and iodine, has been used in various
industries, in agriculture as pesticide, photography, disinfection, and in
cloud seeding to create rain.
The compound
can be toxic, can cause reproductive problems, and even cancer. Some of the
toxicity symptoms are coughing, wheezing, and difficulty breathing. If
contacted by skin directly, it can result in severe burns and cause death if
inhaled.
The
potential for accumulation of silver iodide particles in soil, water, and
organisms through repeated use could disrupt the ecological balance, could pose
risks to wildlife and humans via the food chain.
Texas Hill
Country was overwhelmed by tropical rain which dumped a lot of precipitation
within a brief period of time. Did Rainmaker’s cloud seeding two days prior contribute
to the disaster?
The CEO
claims that their actions had nothing to do with the massive flood because they
suspended operations. His company “seeded two clouds with 70 g of silver iodide”
[via airplanes]. Doricko stated that they flew one twenty-minute mission. “The
clouds dissipated two hours after the mission,” Doricko added. “Did we seed the
storm itself,” he said. “Absolutely not.”
Doricko told
Shawn Ryan that the most successful missions ever conducted by Rainmaker have
produced tens of millions of gallons of precipitation; but “they got hundreds
of millions of gallons of precipitation, trillions cumulatively.”
Who were Rainmaker’s
cloud seeding customers in Texas?
According to
Doricko, “We have customers throughout Texas, the South Texas Weather Modification
Association, the West Texas Weather Modification Association, groups of
counties and individual farms, which pay us for cloud seeding that have
historically needed more water.”
Doricko said
that the dispersed silver iodide did not remain in the clouds, it was
precipitated by the rain. The aerosol dissipated, he said. There were “twenty
plus hours between the [Rainmaker’s] mission and when the flooding ensued, and
the winds were blowing north-west.” He claimed that any remaining aerosol would
have blown out of the direction of the storm.
Ryan asked Doricko,
who hired them specifically to create this precipitation. Rainmaker was hired
by the South Texas Weather Modification Association, counties, and farms who
needed more water, Doricko replied. They suspended operations on the afternoon
of July 2 when their meteorologist determined that there was an inflow of moisture
from the Gulf.
Shawn Ryan
asked directly, who is regulating Rainmaker. Permits are given by the state,
Doricko said, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Suspension
criteria require Rainmaker to stop operations if the National Weather
Service issues a flash flood warning. The warning was issued at 1 a.m. on July
3”, Doricko said.
