Lawmakers in Louisiana have advanced a bill based largely on a conspiracy theory alleging that aircraft are spraying nanochemicals that alter the weather.
SB 46, passed by the state House of Representatives on May 29, would ban “chemtrails,” the white streaks that trail from jets as they fly. The white lines are actually known as condensation trails or contrails, and they are the result of water vapor in hot aircraft engine exhaust hitting low temperatures at high altitudes.
But backers of SB 46 believe the exhaust is mixed with chemicals that can create clouds, reflect sunlight, and change the weather.
“This bill is to prevent any chemicals above us in the air, specifically to modify the weather,” said State Representative Kimberly Landry Coates, according to a report from New Orleans’ WVUE-TV.
When asked about the details of the bill on the House floor by a fellow lawmaker, Coates said aluminum, barium, and other chemicals have been found in aircraft engine exhaust, though she did not say where that information came from.
Coates claimed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is responsible for chemtrails, together with “multiple” other groups and contractors. She said she has seen documentation implicating “at least nine federal agencies.”
Coates also claimed that she regularly sees chemtrails in the sky over the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge, prompting disbelief from State Representative C. Denise Marcelle.
“So once a week you see people releasing stuff in the air on the way to the Capitol?” Marcelle asked. “So I just need to look up? I probably haven’t been looking up.”
Gathering Steam
SB 46 passed the House 58-32. It was introduced in the Louisiana Senate in March and passed that chamber in April. If ultimately signed into law, it would go into effect in August.
One amendment to the bill requires the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to collect complaints from citizens about chemtrails and pass them on to the Louisiana Air National Guard.
Over the past 25 years there have been legislative attempts to outlaw chemtrails in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., but each time they have collapsed over the lack of evidence that they exist or can influence the weather.
The chemtrail theory is distinct from cloud seeding, an actual weather modification system used in the U.S. and other countries, mainly to alleviate droughts.
