fbpx

DroneSeed – A New Way To Plant Seeds

DroneSeed, a company based in Seattle, Washington, announced a first: approval from the FAA to operate drone swarms weighing over 25kg. They have also announced they have received $3.7 million in funding earlier in 2018.

DroneSeed specializes in using swarms to replant native trees and vegetation that has been devastated by fires. Working governments, NGOs, non-profit organizations as well as private land owners, their radical replanting methods hope to brings post-fire environments to their former glory.

Drone Seed 3
Unique planting methods from DroneSeed

They are currently the only FAA approved firm for heavy lift UAS (unmanned aircraft system) Operations. Having demonstrated safety and efficiency in their control of multiple unmanned aircraft over 25kg, the FAA has classified DroneSeed’s exception as “precedent setting”. DroneSeed has proven track record with its ability to scale operations to heavier payloads for multiple flights.

No products found.

Last updated on 2022-07-07

According to Lisa Ellman, the aviation counsel to DroneSeed: This was an incredibly sophisticated FAA approval process that sets a new legal precedent. Normally these types of approvals are first obtained by major aerospace and industrial giants.

A summary of DroneSeed’s Petition for Exemption here.


Replanting And Reforestation

One of the best way to fight climate change and an ever warming earth is to plant trees. Especially great swatch of forest that have been emptied by forest fire. Reforestation, a $62 billion industry, hasn’t changed changed much over the centuries. Planting is done by hand by work crews – a slow, expensive and laborious process.

While seedlings wait in nursery for a year and half, forest ravaged by fires undergo land erosion, mudslides due to rain. Social Capital, the venture capital firm backing DroneSeed, reckons two and a half billions trees are lost every year, and the with the higher number of forest fires in 2018 that figure will only rise.

Drone Seed 1
DroneSeed

DroneSeed’s model works by UAVs. Semi-automation will cause some human job losses, however DroneSeed believes in the long run the introduction of drones will actually create better opportunities.

Grant Canary, the CEO at DroneSeed had this to say: “People hear automation and they think ‘job killing.’ It’s the opposite. We’re making clean-tech rural jobs people can do for a lifetime.”

Lack of human resources and the often rugged terrain means millions of acres of forestland lie in ruins. What DroneSeed offers is a scalable answer to the problem of under utilization. Getting the forests flourishing again can now be faster and safer and a lot more efficient.

DroneSeed Drones?

DroneSeed has several challenges. Managing battery life with maximizing flight time. They also have to deal with UAVs weighing up to 52kg and capable of delivery a 26kg payload of tree seeds, fertilizers, water and herbicide in every aircraft.

DroneSeed is currently operating four UAVs simultaneously.

Drone Seed 2
Large Drones Equal Large Payloads

DroneSeed’s CEO Grant Canary took time out to explain, “DroneSeed has spent a significant amount of time building the software and the hardware to maximize uptime, or how much our aircraft are on the ground versus in the air working.”

The future will tell how DroneSeed does, but what they offer is a vital service. Getting UAVs to replant forest is unique, and is probably one answer to fighting climate change.

About the author

Baljinder

Anything with 2 wheels and wings!

Comments