President Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency chief has thrown his weight behind right-wing conspiracy theories that have spread online in the wake of the Texas floods.
As the death toll from the tragedy continues to rise, EPA administrator Lee Zeldin has fueled claims about weather manipulation and has tasked his agency to investigate them.
The Trump EPA is committed to total transparency. I tasked my team @EPA to compile everything we know about contrails and geoengineering to release to you now publicly. I want you to know EVERYTHING I know about these topics, and without ANY exception! https://t.co/izKBz0lFvr pic.twitter.com/FkOCgBm3K9
— Lee Zeldin (@epaleezeldin) July 10, 2025
“Americans have questions about geoengineering and contrails,” Zeldin posted on Thursday, referencing a widely debunked idea that planes are spraying a toxic mix of chemicals in the sky with the supposed goal of manipulating the weather.
“They expect honesty and transparency from their government when seeking answers,” he added. “For years, people who asked questions in good faith were dismissed, even vilified by the media and their own government. This ends today.”
The post, which was followed up by a short video, was seen by some as a dog whistle to MAGA conspiracy theorists who have come out in force since the devastating floods in Kerr County, suggesting that the devastating event was a human-made disaster.
Since the flash floods hit on Friday, various influencers, elected officials, and media personalities have raised a number of theories, including the possibility that cloud-seeding, in which planes scatter dust particles through clouds to trigger rain and snow, might have caused or at least exacerbated the deluge.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also said she would introduce a bill “that prohibits the injection, release, or dispersion of chemicals or substances into the atmosphere for the express purpose of altering weather, temperature, climate, or sunlight intensity”.
“It will be a felony offense,” she added.
But Zeldin’s intervention as the head of the EPA–and someone President Trump often jokes is the most important person in his cabinet–carries considerable weight as it places longstanding theories about solar geoengineering and chemtrails into the spotlight.
In his video post, the former New York congressman said he had tasked the EPA to “compile a list of everything we know of contrails and geo-engineering,” which would be fully released to the public.
“Instead of simply dismissing these questions and concerns as baseless conspiracies, we’re meeting them head-on,” he said.
“To anyone who has ever looked up to the streaks in the sky and asked: ‘what the heck is going on?’ or seen headlines about private actors, or even governments, looking to blot out the sun in the name of stopping global warming, we’ve endeavoured to answer all your questions on the links on your screen.”
“In fact,” he added, “EPA shares many of the same concerns when it comes to potential threats to human health and the environment – especially from solar geo-engineering activities.”
Zeldin’s announcement was met with a mix of cynicism, enthusiasm, and even more theories about the Texas floods.
One user noted there had been “too many storms with hail and flooding. We need to see if the storms have any correlation with cloud seeding.”
Another referenced the supposed cover-up over the Jeffrey Epstein files.
“The admin should not be talking about transparency after the Epstein fiasco,” they wrote.
Another described it as a “bold move,” telling Zeldin, “I am very proud of our EPA today. Trust is returning step by step.”
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