The Ministry of Environment and Water has revealed that it is using drone technology to help combat the red palm weevils in line with its strategic goal of developing and implementing a key plan to fight and eradicate agricultural pests.

Eng. Mohamed Mousa Abdullah, Director of Agriculture Research Department, Ministry of Environment and Water, said, “The adoption of drone technology forms part of the Ministry’s efforts to implement the best environmental and agricultural practices to achieve sustainable development and reinforce the UAE’s leadership in the world of innovation. This is in line with the initiative launched by H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, declaring 2015 as the year of innovation.”

 He added that the drone’s remote sensors will find the reason behind the spreading of red palm weevils—collating all necessary data. Additionally, the locations of the infected areas of the red palm weevils and severity of infections they cause can be determined using the technology’s aerial photography capability and other sensors.

 The drone’s accurate sensors conduct technical comprehensive survey of palm farms by measuring the electromagnetic radiation energy being released by infected trees. The data is then collected to map and measure its spectral signature, which identifies the types, locations and degrees of injuries.