Drone technology, once reserved for warfare and surveillance, is now being used to help protect Australia’s endangered animals.
The Greater Glider, recently classified as endangered, has seen its population drop due to deforestation and bushfires.
Is it overstepping the fine balance between conservation and industry?
In today’s episode of The Briefing, Leanne St George from Ripper Corporation Drones and Stuart Blanch from the World Wide Fund for Nature joined us to explain how they’re using drones and why they think the effort is worth it.
Ripper Corporation Drones, in collaboration with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the Forest Alliance, are conducting detailed surveys to identify the gliders’ habitats.
These drones can spot and track the gliders from the air, helping conservationists to lobby for greater protections.
“We’ve been up there with drones, people out there ready today to get arrested because they want to protect the greater gliders and koalas that live there,” Mr Blanch said.
He said the issue is that the Forestry Corporation legally has a right to log forests, even in areas where endangered species like Greater Gliders and koalas are present.
“If we can see them, we can save them,” he added.
Ms St George said her team deployed the drones and observed areas of land being cleared and logs being removed.
Mark Phillips, a drone operator for Ripper Corporation Drones, would fly a drone in extreme weather conditions for up to six hours.
“He’s passionate, he’s absolutely a night owl. He’ll be up in a forest at 1,000 metres altitude in July when it’s freezing cold, droning for six hours straight.”
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