A drone that is also known as the "Industrial Revolution in the Sky" and is attracting attention. While private companies have shown various utilization methods and demonstration experiments are proceeding in the National Strategic Special Zones, more and more local governments are starting to introduce them. There are a wide range of utilization methods such as transportation of goods, aerial photography, search for missing persons, infrastructure inspection, etc., and some are embarking on full-scale training of drone pilots. In addition to supporting the lives of depopulated areas and remote islands, the use of drones can bring many benefits to local governments, such as improving the efficiency of office work. This year is exactly the appearance of "the first year of drone utilization" for local governments. ■ Utilized for forest monitoring and search for missing persons Maniwa City, Okayama Prefecture, decided to introduce a drone earlier than other local governments. The city introduced a drone in 2013 as part of the "smart forestry" that utilizes ICT (information and communication technology) in forestry. The city is located in the Chugoku Mountains, which is located on the border with Tottori prefecture, and has long been known as one of the best forestry areas in Okayama prefecture. Even now, about 80% of the city area is forest. However, due to the prolonged slump in the forestry industry, there was an urgent need to revitalize the forestry industry, and we decided to utilize ICT to promote efficient forestry. We have built a "forest forestry cloud" that connects the city hall and forestry associations via an online line to share forest resource information. Among them, drones take aerial photographs of forests and are used for monitoring forest resources. As a result, the collection of forest residue and thinned wood used for biomass power generation has become more efficient. Maniwa City Forestry and Biomass Industry Division said, "Forest data that I had been checking for hours after going to the site can be completed in an instant by using drones and ICT. The work efficiency in the city hall has also improved significantly." Delighted. Kanonji City, Kagawa Prefecture is also one of the advanced areas by utilizing drones. In September 2015, in cooperation with a private company, we proceeded with a demonstration experiment to deliver medical supplies to Ibuki Island in the Seto Inland Sea, about 10 km off the city, ahead of the rest of the country. There are 24 large and small manned islands in the Seto Inland Sea off the coast of Kagawa Prefecture, and as the islanders are declining and aging, the transportation of goods has emerged as a major issue. Ibuki Island is one such remote island, with about 270 households and less than 600 people living there. In this experiment, a drone that crossed the sea safely dropped supplies on the island's school ground with a parachute. Since the beginning of 2016, we have conducted a demonstration experiment in which a drone is used instead of a starting gun in the rescue operation of the fire brigade and a guide rope is passed to the opposite bank, and also to search for a missing person in the mountains of the city. The drone was dispatched. The Kanonji City Crisis Management Division said, "Drones can be used in many fields such as transporting goods and saving lives. In the future, we would like to make use of them for living support, disaster prevention, rescue activities, etc. in remote islands." ■ Shobara City starts pilot training business in February Although there are various ways to utilize drones, the number of pilots who can operate drones accurately is still small. Each local government is learning how to fly from universities and private companies, but Shobara City, Hiroshima Prefecture will embark on a full-scale pilot training project. Although Shobara City charters industrial helicopters for spraying pesticides on paddy fields, it is expensive and there are some places where helicopters cannot be flown in the mountains, which has been a problem. The city plans to use drones instead of helicopters, and has decided to train a wide range of pilots, including not only city officials but also civilians outside the city. The training is scheduled for February and March 2017, and we are proceeding with the selection of companies that undertake the training and training locations where drones can be flown. At the same time, an industry-government-academia conference will be set up soon to discuss how to utilize the drone. Shobara City's Ichiban Zukuri Division says, "Even if you introduce a drone, it is meaningless unless you master it. In the future, we would like to use it not only for spraying pesticides but also for disaster prevention and infrastructure inspection." In addition, Yaizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, has launched a drone-based disaster prevention aviation corps "Blue Seagulls" and has begun using it for road and port surveys and aerial photography of public relations photographs. Naka-cho, Tokushima Prefecture has set up the nation's first drone promotion office in the town hall and is proceeding with demonstration experiments such as home delivery services. Iga City, Mie Prefecture, has indicated that it will utilize the purchased drone for understanding the damage situation such as road collapses and landslides, excavating archaeological sites, and promoting tourism. Kesennuma City, Miyagi Prefecture has also introduced a drone to confirm damage in the event of a disaster. In the National Strategic Special Zone, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture is conducting a demonstration experiment to realize home delivery of drones, and Hiroshima Prefecture and Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture are planning to utilize it for maintenance and inspection of bridges such as the Honshu-Shikoku Bridge. Semboku City, Akita Prefecture, is considering using it for volcano observations and wildlife behavior surveys. Drones weren't well known among local government officials until a while ago, but they've become so popular over the past year that they're spreading rapidly. However, there is no point in just introducing it. Drones not only streamline work, but also bring a three-dimensional expanse to human activity. The wisdom of local governments is being questioned as to what kind of use it will be used to solve local problems. Yasushi Takada Political journalist List of articles by this author Graduated from Kwansei Gakuin University. After serving as a reporter for the Culture Department, Social Affairs Department, and Political Economy Department at a local newspaper, he was in charge of annual planning articles, children's newspapers, etc. as an editorial committee member. He became independent in 2015 and is writing on web news sites as a freelance journalist. He is also active as a condominium manager.
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