Drones to Aid Tree Planting in BC Post-Wildfire Restoration Areas Deemed Too Unsafe

Telus has recently invested $11.4 million (CAD) and has teamed up with Canadian reforestation company Flash Forest to develop and expand its post-wildfire reforestation using drones to plant tree seedlings, according to the BC news site “Castanet” (4-18-23). Flash Forest will be using some of the funds to re-plant in the Okanagan region of BC.

“Castanet” notes that an average of 26 million hectares, or 64.2 million acres, of trees are lost every year, with over 30% of this loss directly attributable to wildfires. Despite the growing need for reforestation, tree planting is still largely performed by hand and shovel—a method that is labor intense, difficult, and faces terrain with limited accessibility.

According to “Castanet” and Flash Forest’s CEO and Co-Founder Bryce Jones, “Flash Forest will be planting at several post-wildfire sites this spring across the south and central of British Columbia, including the White Rock Lake Wildfire area.” Flash Forest is a Canadian company that uses drones and technology to regenerate post-wildfire areas that are deemed too unsafe for human tree planters.

Flash Forest intends to start planting in the White Rock Lake area in early May. Jones added that “last year, we did about 150,000 trees in the spring, and this year, we’re doing over a million.” The company hopes to increase those numbers to between four and six million trees in 2024.