Debunked Chemtrail Conspiracy Theories Inspire Legislation in Multiple US States

Unsubstantiated ‘chemtrail’ conspiracy theories lead to legislation proposed in US statehouses

BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana Rep. Kimberly Landry Coates presented a bill in the state Legislature that she acknowledged might seem strange or even crazy. Coates discussed “chemtrails,” a conspiracy theory suggesting that aircraft release chemicals through white streaks in the sky for nefarious purposes. She urged lawmakers to ban this unsubstantiated practice, telling skeptics to “start looking up” at the sky.

Louisiana is the latest state to draw inspiration from this conspiratorial narrative to create legislation. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed a similar measure into law last year, and Florida has passed a similar bill in both the House and the Senate. More than a dozen other states have introduced their own legislation.

Such bills indicate how misinformation is moving beyond the online world and into public policy. Experts argue that elevating unsubstantiated theories into the legislative arena erodes democratic processes, provides credibility where there is none, and diverts resources from actual issues.

Louisiana’s bill, awaiting Republican Gov. Jeff Landry’s signature, prohibits the intentional release of chemicals into the atmosphere to affect temperature, weather, climate, or sunlight intensity. It also requires the Department of Environmental Quality to collect reports from those who believe they have observed such activities.

While some lawmakers target real weather modification techniques, others rely on dubious evidence. High-profile political officials, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, have supported discussions about weather control and banning “chemtrails.”

Chemtrail conspiracy theories, widely debunked, claim that white streaks behind aircraft reveal chemicals being spread for various purposes. Ken Leppert, an associate professor of atmospheric science at the University of Louisiana Monroe, explains that these streaks are primarily composed of water and form due to exhaust emissions under specific humidity and temperature conditions. A fact sheet from government agencies, including NASA and the EPA, confirms that contrails do not pose health risks but can affect atmospheric temperature and climate.

Scientists overwhelmingly agree that evidence cited as proof of chemtrails can be explained by well-understood physics and chemistry associated with aircraft contrails and atmospheric aerosols. A 2016 survey of 77 chemists and geochemists found that 76 were unaware of evidence proving a secret large-scale atmospheric program.

Some arguments supporting the chemtrails narrative misrepresent actual scientific endeavors like cloud seeding, which uses artificial materials to induce precipitation. Parker Cardwell, an employee of a California-based cloud seeding company, testified in Louisiana to amend the legislation to avoid impacts on the industry.

While presenting Louisiana’s bill, Coates referenced charts and graphics from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on spraying heavy metals to reflect sunlight and cool the Earth. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 directed the Office of Science and Technology Policy to develop a governance framework and research plan related to solar radiation modification, a type of geoengineering. Research into its viability and potential consequences is ongoing, but no methods have been deployed.

In recent years, misinformation and conspiratorial narratives have become more common in Louisiana’s lawmaking process. Opponents argue that such bills divert time and focus from more pressing issues. State Rep. Denise Marcelle, a Democrat who opposed Louisiana’s bill, highlighted the state’s high incarceration, poverty, crime, and maternal mortality rates as more critical concerns.