An aircraft crosses the vapor trails of another plane over Frankfurt, Germany, on April 19, 2018. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)

Republicans throughout the Heartland are passing bills that ban “chemtrails,” which do not exist.

The chemtrail conspiracy theory — which has been debunked several times — argues that the white contrail lines left behind certain airplanes are used for nefarious purposes. Some believe that the government is using the nonexistent “chemtrails” to release toxins, mind-controlling metals or population reduction materials.

“Chemtrails,” are actually a mixture of water vapor and jet exhaust left behind by some airplanes under certain weather conditions.

Despite the facts, Republicans have stoked the conspiracy theory to the point where 24 states have introduced or passed bills that ban chemtrails, including Oklahoma, Tennessee, Ohio and Iowa.

Many of the bills use similar language to chemtrail conspiracy theorists, with Arizona’s related bill explicitly prohibiting the release of chemicals into the sky.

“Notwithstanding any other law, a person may not intentionally inject, RELEASE or dispense by any means any chemical, chemical compound, substance or APPARATUS within the borders of this state with the express PURPOSE of affecting temperature, weather or the INTENSITY of sunlight,” the bill reads.

The chemtrail conspiracy itself sows distrust in the government, making the seemingly widespread Republican effort more disturbing. Many of the bills also prohibit geoengineering, an underdeveloped practice that some scientists theorize could mitigate the effects of climate change.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) are two of the most high-profile Republicans who have pedaled conspiracies related to the weather. In an X post from March, Kennedy endorsed state GOP’s efforts to ban “dousing our citizens, waterways and landscapes with toxins.”

Greene has repeatedly made baseless claims that the government can control extreme weather like hurricanes. A far-right group in Oklahoma has also subscribed to this theory. After the Texas flood disaster claimed the lives of at least 138 people earlier this month, an antigovernment militia called Veterans on Patrol claimed responsibility for sabotaging weather radars in Oklahoma (local police said the alleged vandal was not associated with the group.) The group’s leader said it believes the government is using the radars to control the weather, when the radars are actually used to track dangerous storm systems like tornadoes.

The Trump administration has also made numerous changes to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), including shutting down a research division on environmental studies, repealing greenhouse gas emission regulations and slashing the agency’s staff by a reported 23%. And reports from Tuesday point to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin taking steps to revoke a determination that climate change from greenhouse gases is harmful, moving towards denying the existence of climate change.

The Republican Party’s actions come as climate scientists have repeatedly warned that the Earth’s rapidly climbing temperature will increase the frequency and intensity of extreme weather.