UK-based start-up proposes a high-tech solution to the extreme deforestation- replanting the forests with drones.
We have told you here about numerous initiatives that have taken up the heavy task to monitor and prevent extensive and often illegal cutting of the world’s forest- some examples include the global forest watch, and Rainforest Connection.
Unfortunately, the industrial scale deforestation that is currently taken place across the globe is so intense, that replacing all that is lost with traditional techniques is an almost impossible task.
Now, during the United Nations Solutions Summit, a British company, called BioCarbon Engineering, demonstrated a method that brings hope that we might actually be able to match the rate of deforestation with the rate of reforestation. They propose that we use unmanned aerial vehicles, a.k.a. UAVs ot drones.
According to the guys behind the idea, drone technology offers numerous possibilities, and it will only get better as it improves. Now that UAVs can carry a sufficient load and have batteries that can allow flights of substantial length, these gadgets are becoming more and more desirable and useful to scientific and engineering teams around the world, and the guys at BioCarbon Engineering are leading the way.
The drones that these guys intend to use carry the so-called seed bombs. These “bombs” are dropped at a specific rate and at specific locations, which are carefully pre-selected using high-quality 3D maps developed prior to the mission. Once these bombs hit the ground, they penetrate through and nest at 5 cm depth. There they dissolve and release not only the seed, but also everything it needs in order to grow. After that, the advanced technology is used to monitor the new trees and provide long-term health assessment for the ecosystem.
The inventors are convinced that as technology develops, tree planting practices will advance. BioCarbon Engineering are already showing how exactly this would work.
Image (c) BioCarbon Engineering
