Great Lakes Council using a Yamaha UAV drone to spray Bitou Bush

This video Great Lakes Council trialling the use of a Yamaha RMAX Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) drone for weed control of Bitou Bush at Sandbar Beach, NSW, Australia. Council Noxious Weeds Inspector Terry Inkson explains the enormous benefits of using a drone compared with a full size helicopter. Thanks to Skyline UAV and Yamaha Australia for their cooperation and assistance. Great Lakes Council participates in this cooperative and coordinated program annually on the Mid North Coast from Kempsey to the Great Lakes Region." Aerial spraying of bitou bush is an efficient tool that affords cost effective and targeted control of bitou bush with minimum impact on the environment. Previous aerial spraying efforts over the past decade have seen a 96% reduction of Bitou Bush at Bennetts Beach, Jimmys Beach, Yacaaba Peninsula and Winda Woppa Reserves at Hawks Nest. Aerial spraying large tracts of Bitou infested land can cost less than 10% of the price of utilising 'bush regeneration techniques'. It's about 35% of the cost 'high volume spot spraying', and is undertaken in a fraction of the time of both these techniques. Although these smaller unmanned helicopters are currently bound by the same regulations as full size helicopters, they allow for a reduction to the amount of staff needed to implement a project and offer a more refined delivery process, than 'boom spraying' with large scale helicopters. UAV technology provides a 'new tool' to the 'weed management tool belt' for treating weeds in difficult terrain or where utilising a conventional helicopter isn't possible. Less like conventional aerial spraying, more like high volume spot spraying, UAV's allow the operator access over the top of taller infestations, and pushes the herbicide down, reducing the potential for drift in certain situations compared to high volume ground spraying. Utilising UAV's where appropriate may reduce the impacts on community recreation by limiting the closure of areas, due to the more refined delivery process than aerial spraying.