China's first regulations on artificially modifying weather will take effect from May 1 this year, aiming to give a legal basis to this branch of meteorology.

Cao Kangtai, deputy head of the legislative affairs office under the State Council, said at a press conference on Wednesday that the regulations would provide an important legal basis and guarantee for the administration of this work.

According to Qin Dahe, director of the China Meteorological Administration (CMA), the regulations highlight policies and principles relevant to China's work on artificial weather modification and related fields.

Qin said that the practice of artificially modifying weather was an important part of meteorology, and one which benefited people's lives as well economic development.

He said, "Taking into account social, economic and ecological benefits, China's work on weather modification has made great strides in preventing and fighting various disasters as well as developing the resources of clouds and water in the air."

China's agricultural production has long faced the threat of extreme weather. The technology of artificially modifying weather in the forms of artificial rainfall, hail and frost prevention as well as rain and fog dispersal has been widely used to prevent disasters.

Since 1990, frequent droughts as a result of global climate changes have led to a worsening water shortage in China, damaging economic development.

Qin said causing rain to fall by seeding clouds was an important way to develop new water resources.

However, Cao Kangtai also pointed out that some urgent problems related to the practice of modifying weather needed solving.

An effective coordination system had yet to be set up among the various departments involved in such work. Some technicians had no formal training. Equipment like rocket-powered missiles and rocketlaunchers were not 100 percent suitable, Cao said.

Statistics show that over 1,600 counties across 30 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in China regularly use weather modification methods, employing more than 29,000 technicians.

Altogether China has 2,123 aircraft which handle the bulk of artificial rainfall work, over 6,790 anti-aircraft devices are used in hail prevention and artificial rain.

(Xinhua News Agency April 25, 2002)