California drought manipulation conspiracy theory
{{Short description|Weather modification conspiracy theory}}
The California drought manipulation conspiracy theory is a conspiracy theory that proposes that the 2011–2017 drought was a deliberate, man-made phenomenon, created by weather modification. It is largely promoted by a number of self-proclaimed "independent researchers" and "scientists", and by alternative news outlets.{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}} The theory has been dismissed by the scientific community and mainstream media as fringe science or pseudoscience.{{cite news |last=Gumbel |first=Andrew |date=September 26, 2015 |title=Drought blamers: California conspiracists see government's hand in arid climate |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/sep/26/california-drought-conspiracy-theories-geoengineering-climate |archive-url=https://archive.today/20150927123541/http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/sep/26/california-drought-conspiracy-theories-geoengineering-climate|archive-date=September 27, 2015|newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=August 31, 2016}}{{cite web |url=http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2015/09/22/growing-number-believe-californias-drought-is-a-government-conspiracy/ |date=September 22, 2015|title=Growing Number Believe California's Drought Is A Government Conspiracy |publisher=CBS Sacramento |access-date=September 1, 2016}}
Key claims and components
The 2011–2017 drought inspired alarm among many, leading to the emergence of conspiracy theories purporting to explain the cause of a complex problem using oversimplified and non-evidence-based explanations.{{cite journal |volume=35 |issue=2 |year=2017 |journal=The Cambridge Journal of Anthropology |pages=47–64 |title=Mimesis and Conspiracy |vauthors=Vine M, Carey M|doi=10.3167/cja.2017.350205 |url=https://curis.ku.dk/ws/files/212299621/Mimesis_Conspiracy_to_submit.docx }}
Many of the proponents claim that chemtrails are used to affect storm clouds, in such a manner as to suppress the development of precipitation. This would occur because of the presence of too many cloud condensation nuclei, or "cloud seeds", in a single area. Others say that technologies similar to HAARP (a federal ionospheric research program, which was decommissioned in 2015),{{cite news | title = HAARP closure postponed until 2015 | url = http://www.adn.com/article/20140702/haarp-closure-postponed-until-2015 | first = Dermot | last = Cole | date =July 2, 2014 | work = Alaska Dispatch News | access-date =August 29, 2016}} are being used to create a large and stubborn high-pressure area over the West Coast of the United States.{{cite news|last1=Rogers|first1=Paul|url=http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_24904396/california-drought-whats-causing-it|title=California drought: What's causing it?|date=January 13, 2014|access-date=March 8, 2018}} They claim that this, also, discourages storms and rainfall.
Dane Wigington and his group GeoEngineering Watch were the most visible proponents of this theory. Wigington said that government agencies and other entities have economic and geopolitical motivations to manipulate the weather on the West Coast and elsewhere.
Proponents have claimed credibility for the theory, in part, as a result of a Los Angeles County cloud seeding program, begun in early 2016.{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/government-buries-weather-modification-news/ |title=HAARPing On; The government didn't quietly admit to modifying weather in California; cloud seeding is a well-documented effort to counteract the effects of drought (and isn't related to chemtrails). |author=Kim LaCapria |date=March 17, 2016 |website=Snopes.com |publisher=Snopes.com |access-date=September 2, 2016 }} This reinforced their view that government continues to engage in weather modification and/or climate engineering.{{cite web|date=February 5, 2015|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/02/the-climate-conspiracy-theory-coming-to-your-congressmans-twitter-feed/452628/|title=The Climate Conspiracy Theory Coming to Your Congressman's Twitter Feed|first=Jason|last=Plautz|website=The Atlantic|access-date=8 March 2018}}{{cite web|last1=Pentland|first1=William |date=February 4, 2014|title=As Water Supply Reaches Record Low, California Combats Drought With Black-Ops Weather Control Technology From Vietnam War|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/williampentland/2014/02/04/as-water-supply-reaches-record-low-california-combats-drought-with-black-ops-weather-control-technology-from-vietnam-war/|work=Forbes.com}}
See also
{{Portal|California|Weather}}