Los Angeles to seed clouds for rain

LOS ANGELES, June 18 (UPI) -- Los Angeles County officials say they will spend $800,000 to inject clouds with silver iodide particles in an effort to boost rainfall.

The cloud-seeding project will be conducted next winter in the San Gabriel Mountains with the hope of increasing rainfall by 15 percent to raise levels in local reservoirs, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday. Critics said they fear the program could trigger landslides.

A 2003 National Academy of Sciences report said cloud seeding is unproven and urged more thorough study, the newspaper said.

"To have them be in the right place at the right time, that's where it gets really complicated," said Daniel W. Breed of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo.