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LVM receives the first drone exploitation authorization in Latvia

Nowadays, sustainable and efficient forestry is not imaginable without technical support. This autumn, JSC “Latvia’s State Forests” (LVM) was the first one in Latvia to receive drone exploitation authorization. This authorization will enable the company’s employees to fly drones outside direct visibility, reaching a 1-kilometer distance from the take-off point.

“We have been actively working for a long time to obtain such an authorization. In our daily work, we see how much these technologies help and increase manual labor efficiency by providing high-quality information. This authorization allows our trained drone pilots to direct the device also outside of direct visibility, and we were able to obtain this authorization only thanks to the EU regulation that divides drone pilot authorizations into various categories. One such category is Exploitation authorization, where a clause allows us to perform flights outside direct visibility. The main benefit is to fly further than previously and obtain data from wider territories,” Kārlis Linde, LVM Drone exploitation manager, explains.

Currently, LVM manages 172 drones, and 480 employees have obtained the drone pilot certification. When it comes to forestry works, drones are useful in many aspects, such as large nest monitoring, forest inventory management data collection, forestry project planning, and also fire and hurricane damage management. Drones are invaluable helpers when monitoring melioration systems and potentially harmed nurseries.

Numerically, LVM most frequently uses drones to control forest regeneration and nurturing works. With drones, it is possible to see the properties from above, improving the decision-making on the desired nursery nurturing type and time. In addition, drones are used to explore and analyze the damage caused by bark beetles.