ABSTRACT

Several trends in the use of the atmosphere on the one hand, and the actual variations in the atmosphere on the other, have focused attention on the political, planning and legal aspects of weather and climate. Politicians and political scientists have for the most part taken little interest in the human use of the atmosphere. During the 1960’s a number of reports were published in the United States about the success of various weather modification activities in that country. The position of government policy in other countries is not, of course, the same as in the United States, and it is perhaps appropriate briefly to contrast the position in Canada. The perception of the possibilities of weather modification and the attitudes of people towards government involvement in weather modification are questions of considerable merit, whatever the ‘political’ attitude towards atmospheric resources is.