The Edavaka grama panchayat in Wayanad district has launched a drone survey to collect data to execute projects for climate change mitigation and to formulate adaptation strategies for the agriculture sector.
The survey was launched as a part of the ‘Raise to net zero Edavaka’ campaign of the local body to draft a climate action plan, panchayat president H.B. Pradeep told The Hindu.
Mr. Pradeep said the drone survey for the purpose was the first such initiative in the State, and the aim was to have zero carbon footprint by bringing down pollution, carbon emissions, and plastic waste generation. The panchayat had earmarked ₹46 lakh for the project, he added.
The borders of the grama panchayat and its wards will be marked in the first phase using drones. Details of roads in the local body and data of residents would also be collected, apart from gathering information on waterbodies and details of fallow land and public institutions, he added.
A scientific study will be conducted in the second phase of the project to assess carbon emissions in the panchayat. Carbon credit projects would be launched to make the panchayat a carbon-neutral one with the support of farmers, said Mr. Pradeep.
The project will be completed in three years. Climate-resilient farming, modern waste management and soil conservation initiatives, and sensitisation programmes among schoolchildren would be launched in the second phase, he added.
