Tanya Weaver Mon 16 Dec 2024
Collected at: https://eandt.theiet.org/2024/12/16/tech-conserve-carbon-storing-mangroves-gets-underway-united-arab-emirates
Climate tech start-up Nabat is using AI and autonomous robotics to conserve natural ecosystems, beginning with mangroves and expanding to other habitats.
Mangroves are often referred to as nature’s carbon storehouse. These salt-tolerant trees and shrubs grow in lattice formations in shallow and brackish ocean water.
According to the Centre for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry, mangroves remove and store about 10 billion tons of carbon as biomass, more than most other ecosystems on Earth, including rainforests.
They can be found in tropical and subtropical climates throughout the world, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In a bid to restore these vital biomes within its borders, the UAE has committed to planting 100 million more mangrove trees by 2030 as part of its national mangrove restoration programme.
To help it to do this, the commercialisation arm of the UAE’s Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC) – VentureOne – is working with Nabat to bring its technology to market.
Nabat’s AI and autonomous robotics include the use of drones and AI-powered software to enable precision mapping, seeding and monitoring.
During the mapping stage, Nabat’s drones fly over the area, surveying the habitat and providing vast amounts of data about soil, density, elevation and hydrology.
Once seeding patterns have been established, the drone will then fly over the area, releasing seeds from the air. This method has advantages over traditional mangrove planting in that it is not as labour intensive and the surrounding ecosystem is not harmed during the process.
The Nabat system also has monitoring capabilities to help ensure planted trees grow safely.
Najwa Aaraj, CEO of the Technology Innovation Institute, ATRC’s applied research arm and the developer of the technology behind Nabat, said: “Technology and nature are often seen to be at odds – but when we combine technology with science-based research to solve critical problems, technology can become one of nature’s most powerful allies.”
While the initial focus will be on mangroves in the UAE, Nabat’s technology can be used in other hard-to-reach and remote areas. As such, the aim is to expand its solution for use in other ecosystems, including desert areas, farmland, forests and coral reefs.
Nabat says that this will allow conservation and restoration efforts to scale efficiently while minimising costs.
Aaraj said: “Our system is helping solve several critical challenges related to conservation, one of the most important being data gathering. No two ecosystems are alike – each needs a customised, data-driven approach.”
The video below describes how Nabat’s technology will be used to restore mangroves in the UAE:
Leave a Reply