Drone Technology in Forestry: How the Sector Innovation Fund is Unlocking Remote Sensing in Forestry

DRONE regulation has proved to be a major challenge in harnessing the potential of this technology for use in the sector. Through the Sector Innovation Fund (SIF), which FSA is driving in partnership with the DSTI, the Institute of Commercial Forestry Research (ICFR), as a key research institution, is playing a central role in developing a platform to bridge the gap for the Forestry Sector. Following approval of the Remote Sensing programme within the SIF portfolio, the programme leaders quickly realised that the road to regulatory compliance was gravely underestimated. Two years on and the programme is fully compliant through the ICFR, and flights have commenced in commercial stands. This programme has therefore laid the groundwork and is working to provide this service to the Sector.

TYPE OF OPERATION
The use of drones in South Africa is primarily regulated under the Civil Aviation Act (CAA) Part 101 – Getting this wrong can result in very expensive problems down the road. Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS). While it might seem straightforward on face value, regulatory challenges start with knowing how to identify the type of operation you are conducting. Getting this wrong can result in very expensive problems down the road. The CAA categorises four distinct types of operations: commercial, corporate, non-profit, and private (Table 1). Commercial operations are for activities that are conducted directly for compensation or hired out. Key to this is that there are two organisations where there is a profit-driven exchange of money for services provided by the drone. All the licences and approvals are required to conduct commercial drone operations.
Corporate operations are when drones are used in the context of a business or company for its internal purposes. This type of operation provides benefits to the organisation (managing your own assets) as opposed to providing services to an external client for profit. This type of operation crucially does not require the user to have an Air Service Licence (ASL).
Non-profit operations, similar to corporate operations, does not require an ASL. These are conducted by non-profit organisations and importantly, it can be internal or external operations, provided there is no profit-driven agenda. This category includes activities such as research and training.
Private operations have highly restrictive limitations and is only for an individual’s personal use.

ROC AND OPERATIONS MANUAL
The next key point of consideration is the RPAS Operators Certificate (ROC) and its associated operations manual. The operations manual drafts the entire size, scope, and type of activities to be conducted under an ROC. This includes guidelines on documentation and record keeping, safety management systems, security, and insurance based on the Civil Aviation Technical Standards (CATS). It is important that when registering a drone to an ROC (whether internally or externally) that you ensure that all the operations planned are included and approved, that way it limits the need for any amendments to the operations manual. To get amendments approved, you would need to pay an additional per-page fee according to CAA regulations.

REMOTE SENSING FOR FOREST MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME

The SIF has enabled the ICFR to achieve full compliance, setting a model for other organisations to follow. The ICFR has registered the drone to an external ROC supplier, ensuring that the ROC regulatory components are addressed while the project can focus on the applications for the sector. This by no means absolves the ICFR from all regulatory hurdles, but certainly helps the team navigate some of the more complex components.

As part of this initiative, the Remote Sensing for Forest Management programme exemplifies a strong collaborative approach. The ICFR, University of Pretoria, and Stellenbosch University are jointly developing a cutting-edge remote sensing platform to drive innovation in forest management. With a strong emphasis on forest health, the ICFR and FABI are working to establish remote sensing tools that could become part of a national forest health monitoring program. The foundation of this monitoring system lies in spectral anomaly detection – identifying deviations in spectral signatures to pinpoint forest damage. To achieve this, the system requires comprehensive spectral datasets that encompass both pest- and pathogen- induced damage and healthy forestry species across different crop stages and seasons.

A key milestone in this initiative is the new MSc study launched in 2024 by the ICFR, focusing on the spectral discrimination of three eucalypt species – E. dunnii, E. grandis x nitens, and E. grandis x urophylla – at
mid-rotation during summer and winter seasons. This research recognises the complexity of spectral reflectance, which varies across different environmental conditions and sites. The student on this project, Wandile Khumalo, under the guidance of Dr Mthembeni Mngadi (UKZN), Prof Onisimo Mutanga (UKZN), and Dr Ilaria Germishuizen (ICFR), has already made significant progress. In August 2024, the winter data collection for 35 compartments was successfully completed, and the team is now actively collecting summer data.

Thanks to funding support, the ICFR has also trained two permanent staff members, Greg Fuller and Xolani Colvelle, who are now licensed drone operators. This investment in expertise ensures that aerial data collection will be efficient, precise, and sustainable for future research efforts. Another critical output of this project is the development of a centralised image repository on the University of Pretoria Information Hub. Managed jointly by FABI and the ICFR, this initiative will create a catalogued, searchable forestry image library with associated metadata. This resource is expected to play a pivotal role in future research, providing a foundation for broader forest health assessments and technological advancements.

Given the legal constraints associated with drone operations in South Africa, the three collaborating institutions will plan “flying campaigns” where the ICFR drone will be deployed to collect data for various projects. This strategic approach will optimise costs and time, making aerial surveys more efficient. Additionally, this service will be offered to industry partners on a cost-recovery basis, further extending the project’s impact on the forestry sector. 

As this project evolves, it lays the groundwork for enhanced forest monitoring and management, contributing to sustainable forestry practices and improved national monitoring capabilities.

Source: FSA 

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