Webinar Summary
Uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), also known as drones, offer a lower cost, less invasive alternative to traditional ground-based monitoring for emergent vegetation that also provides higher resolution images than satellite-based imagery. “Drone the NERRS,” a science transfer project, evaluated the efficacy of a standardized UAS wetland monitoring protocol for assessing and monitoring emergent vegetation across more reserves representing a range of biogeographic regions across the NERRS.
The project increased overall drone-related capacity within the Reserve System by lowering barriers to UAS-based monitoring, supporting the development of a community of practice, and encouraging UAS pilot certification for more reserve staff. Applying the protocol across different experience levels, airframes, and software used for mission planning and analysis yielded unique experiences for staff at each participating reserve. These experiences enabled staff to provide feedback on the protocol while also informing other reserves interested in adding UAS capacity to their programs in the future. In this webinar, the project team will share about their experience building towards a System-wide UAS community of practice, project outcomes, and lessons learned.
Webinar Summary Products
- Full Session Recording (YouTube - check back after the webinar)
- Speaker Bios (Event Page)
- Slide Deck (PDF - check back after the webinar)