Jun 08, 2019 BLOG
Deforestation is a major issue in the world today and Governments all over the world are struggling to fight this issue. India is going through vast industrialization and urbanization which is resulting in widespread loss of trees, which is ultimately resulting in loss of huge areas of Forests which were once a source of life for a wide variety of Flora and Fauna becoming extinct today.
In order to prevent this, steps are being taken by the Government by conducting manual afforestation, but manual plantation of trees is a very slow process that would not fulfill the required rate of afforestation needed to revive the lost forests.
A great alternative to using manual help for plantation is the usage of Drones. Drones are fast, reliable, automated and can reach places that are hard to access for humans such as terrains.
Drones can be used to drop the seeds aerially into areas where trees need to be planted. Using this technology, huge areas can be covered in less time, and lands previously un-utilized can be used for creating forests.
India is accepting the idea of the revival of trees using a drone survey and has started to implement it. In Bangalore, aerial seeding was done in the Kallinayakanahalli hills of Gowribidanur using 5 Quadcopter Drones. The bombing of seeds was done across hilly terrains from a height of 300 feet. Karnataka also took part in this initiative in 2016 and dropped 1 lakh rare saplings across an empty land in the Western Ghats.
This method of afforestation will be implemented in other parts of the country as well after testing in these areas. The reason for aerial seeding being feasible is due to their technological capabilities. Firstly, drones are used to capture photos and create a 3-D map of the area. Then, areas are identified where plantation can be done, the kind of trees that need to be planted with exact accuracy, and calculations are identified.
Then, a plan is made and finally, it is implemented and seeds are dropped off in the areas where the soil and environmental conditions are suitable for plantation. India is filled with areas that are not utilized by forests and neither by agricultural lands, these areas can be identified using Drone-based technology and can be used to plant trees on a wide scale and conduct afforestation.
This will help in providing shelter to the existing plants, animals and also give birth to a new life in these places, hence contributing to the greater good of our environment.
Complete implementation of this technology might seem like a long way to go, but steps are being taken worldwide to integrate Drone-based technology into our lives.
In India, Drones are being used in a lot of industries such as mining, construction, agriculture, disaster management, real estate, and many other sectors. This technology is giving great results and is making complex tasks such as Surveying, mapping, and Data collection and analysis simple.
Although this technology is giving results and is proving itself, it requires more work and safety tests before full implementation for the purpose of reforestation. The Drones have to make sure that the correct seeds are dropped, the right areas are covered, the UAV Pilots have to be given proper training and other precautionary measures have to be taken.
As companies and scientists work towards a future where drones are used for afforestation, the time is not far where India once again witnesses lush green trees and dense forests which are becoming a rare sight today.