Associated Press - November 19, 2009 1:14 PM ET

BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Cloud seeding is no longer considered a gimmick practiced by miracle healers.

It's now an accepted rite of winter practiced across the state by utilities and other groups seeking to squeeze more snow from the atmosphere.

Idaho Power Company spends $1 million annually to seed the clouds above Idaho's mountains to increase the snowpack that holds the water that will ultimately drive hydroelectric turbines to produce cheap power.

But Idaho's biggest utility is not alone, the Idaho Statesman reports.

A group of eastern Idaho counties and businesses have formed a coalition that seeds clouds in the Upper Snake River Basin. Officials estimate their efforts have increased snowpack in the region by 7 percent.

Cloud seeding involves the spraying silver iodide into clouds, a process that pulls moisture out to form ice crystals that fall to earth as snow or rain.

Information from: Idaho Statesman, http://www.idahostatesman.com

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