"It is a very controversial subject out here," Steeke said.

"You can call 10 different people and get five one way and five the other," Steeke said, adding: "Some people are very, very against it."

Steeke said he personally is on the fence on the question of cloud seeding.

Critics of weather modification, he said, tend to be louder during dry spells and more quiet in wetter years.

"This year we've had lots of rains, so this year they're not saying a lot," Steeke said, referring to critics of cloud seeding.

According to Boe, agriculture isn't the only sector interested in weather modification.

He said in Canada insurance providers have teamed up to pay for hail suppression efforts around metropolitan centers, including places like Calgary, Alberta.

"Up there, you get the big thunderstorms that roll off the Rockies and go really big, really fast," Boe said.

"It (cloud seeding) is all done in urban areas, because that's where the insurance industry's risk is concentrated. We seed storms that are heading for cities and we let the rest go," Boe said.