LAUSR

The North Dakota Cloud Modification Project was established in 1951 to reduce severe hail damage and increase precipitation in specific counties in North Dakota. Every year, participating counties receive cloud seeding treatment during the months of June, July, and August. Although some atmospheric studies have examined the efficacy of the treatment, few have used statistical procedures to determine how the program affected crop yields and crop losses. We use the panel nature of historical cloud seeding participation and crop data to estimate a two-way fixed effects regression with county-specific time trends to examine the effect of cloud seeding on wheat and barley yields. In addition, we use federal crop insurance data to estimate the effect of cloud seeding on losses for those same crops. Our evaluation indicates that the cloud seeding program had significant positive effects on crop yields and improved loss ratios.