USING DRONES FOR REMOTE REFORESTATION

USING DRONES FOR REMOTE REFORESTATION

In an era where artificial intelligence and drone technology are revolutionizing nearly every industry, it's no surprise that forestry is next in line for a major upgrade. Japan is now using AI-powered drones to reforest lands ravaged by wildfires and climate change. These aren’t just any drones—they use LiDAR to scan terrain, analyze soil conditions, and drop biodegradable, nutrient-rich seed pods with pinpoint precision. The result? An 80% success rate in seed germination, and trees planted ten times faster than by hand.

That is high-tech reforestation in action.

But here’s a thought: how much higher tech could it get if we pushed the limits with AI, data mapping, and automation? Can we develop an even more intelligent system that adapts to soil pH, rainfall patterns, and even local biodiversity needs?

I’m not asking this out of idle curiosity. I’m asking this because there’s nothing that Japan has done before that we in the Philippines cannot do now. In fact, we already are—at least in some areas.

Take Galansiyang, a startup incubated by MSU-IIT and supported by DOST in Northern Mindanao. In Pangantucan, Bukidnon, they’ve been deploying locally designed, 3D-printed drones that mimic the flight of birds like the Asian Glossy Starling. These drones scatter thousands of seed balls—made from clay, compost, and charcoal—over remote mountain areas, planting native trees in places where human foresters simply cannot go.

Now here’s where things get practical. Manual labor is still viable—and even preferable—in most parts of the Philippines. We have a young population, many of whom are unemployed or underemployed. Reforestation projects, especially under the National Greening Program (NGP), have provided thousands of jobs and helped reforest vast areas.

So no, I’m not suggesting we replace people with machines.

But what about remote or dangerous areas? What about reforesting mountainsides too steep to climb, or regions recently scorched by wildfires? Or places prone to landslides, where planting trees could literally save lives?

In those areas, drones make absolute sense. In fact, not using them could be considered a missed opportunity.

Besides, the LiDAR technology needed for mapping and precision planting is already available in the Philippines. We've used it for disaster risk reduction, flood modeling, and urban planning. Why not also apply it to precision forestry?

Other countries are not waiting around. Australia’s AirSeed Technologies, in partnership with WWF, uses drones to plant 40,000 seed pods per day to restore koala habitats. In the UAE, drones plant mangrove seeds in muddy coastlines. In Canada, Flash Forest aims to plant 1 billion trees by 2028. Even the U.S., with its obsession for innovation, has DroneSeed working in post-wildfire zones.

So where do we stand?

While Bukidnon is showing the way, drone-based forestry in the Philippines is still in its infancy. According to the Philippine Drone Network, drones are mostly used for construction, real estate, and media—not for conservation. That’s a gap we need to bridge. We could be using drones not just to plant seeds, but also to monitor forest health, track illegal logging, and inventory endangered species habitats in places like Mt. Iglit-Baco in Mindoro.

What makes the Bukidnon model worth emulating is its community integration. It’s not just about tech—it’s about people. Manobo-Talaandig indigenous groups collect the seeds. Students from Bukidnon Community College prepare the seed balls. The drones do the planting, but the spirit of the forest restoration remains human.

This is the future I envision: a hybrid approach—combining traditional ecological knowledge and grassroots participation with cutting-edge drone tech and AI analysis. Imagine that model scaled up: deploying drones to the mangrove coastlines of Samar, the mountain ranges of the Cordilleras, or the burned hills of Palawan after a forest fire.

But for that to happen, we need policy support, private investment, and bold leadership. Just as we’ve done with climate adaptation and disaster preparedness, we must mainstream drone-based forestry into our national agenda.

Let’s not get stuck thinking that reforestation must always be slow, tedious, and purely manual. It can be smarter, faster, and more efficient—especially when human hands and machine wings work together.

If other countries are proving that drones can reforest the planet, then surely, we in the Philippines can lead the way in Southeast Asia.

Let’s fly with it.

Ramon Ike V. Seneres, www.facebook.com/ike.seneres
iseneres@yahoo.com, 09088877282, senseneres.blogspot.com

09-29-2025 

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