People around the world, especially farmers, see rain as an essential water source. Without it, some regions have to deal with droughts that cause crops to die and have other harmful effects. Thanks to a revolutionary technology, called cloud seeding, such a problem is remedied. However, being fairly early on in its development stages, the technique has become a subject in debates. The full impact of cloud seeding is still not fully known, but it is helpful to what its pros and cons are so far.
List of Pros of Cloud Seeding
1. It creates rain.
One big benefit of cloud seeding is being able to create rain in regions that are most affected by droughts, lessening the impact of the harsh climate. By using the technique, farms can yield more crops due to the fact that farmers will be able to grow plants in areas that might not have supported them in the past. This means cloud seeding can get rid of famine in the future.
2. It makes all areas more hospitable.
There are dry regions of the world that are not habitable or even unsuitable for a visit due to drought. However, cloud seeding can allow for increased rainfall in these areas, making them more hospitable. This might even attract more tourists and help the places’ overall economy as a result.
3. It could regulate the weather.
Many of the best areas to grow crops face severe weather, which can bring about damage to the produce. Through cloud seeding, the atmosphere’s water vapor will be more regulated, which will prevent damaging hail and severe storms to occur.
List of Cons of Cloud Seeding
1. It uses potentially harmful chemicals.
It is important to know that cloud seeding does involve the use of chemicals into the air, which means that it can potentially harm the environment, especially plants and animals. However, the complete effect of cloud seeding on the environment as a whole is not fully known yet. Though silver iodine is not currently known to be harmful to our health today, but it might change in the future as more research is done and completed.
2. It is not really proven to be effective.
After some evaluation of its effectiveness, cloud seeding is found not to be foolproof as of the moment. The technique is mostly used on clouds that already show early signs of rainfall, so it is not known if it is actually the cause of rain. Plus, the high cost of doing it is not even believed to be justifying its effectiveness.
3. It may affect the weather in a negative way.
Though it is believed to regulate the weather, cloud seeding is feared to ultimately change climatic patterns that exist on Earth. This means that places that would normally receive moisture may start to experience drought due to the artificial process of adding compounds to the atmosphere to trigger rainfall.
Conclusion
Trying to cure drought is an ongoing battle, and the latest technology used for this is cloud seeding. Determining if the technique is good or bad might not be as easy as you might assume, but it can be made easier by weighing both its pros and cons.