There are invasive plant species residing in a wilderness desert preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona, causing widespread wildfires, and killing and choking nearby native plants.
And Intel is helping mitigate this issue – through artificial intelligence and drones.
Employees and volunteers in the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy are utilizing Intel to fly drones over Brown’s Ranch Trailhead – Scottsdale McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Arizona and scour the area to find and eliminate a destructive non-native grass known as buffelgrass.
What is buffelgrass?
A perennial grass from Africa, buffelgrass is a plant species invasive particularly to the Sonoran Desert in the southwest United States, where it is threatening desert ecosystems by competing with native plants and causing wildfires. Buffelgrass has the potential to transform this desert ecosystem from a diverse assemblage of plants to a grassland monoculture.
It was in the 1930s when these plant species were brought to Arizona for erosion control. However, starting in the 1980s, it just began expanding rapidly. If left unchecked and uncontrolled, buffelgrass can cause fast-moving wildfires and dominate the desert landscape.
Brown’s Ranch Trailhead – Scottsdale McDowell Sonoran Preserve is home to 20 different cacti species, over 600 different types of animals, and over 400 native plant species. However, the existence of these buffelgrasses are choking out the wildlife. When fire strikes, buffelgrass burns longer, threatening the cacti and other wildlife.
According to United States Geological Survey research, early treatment of areas invaded by buffelgrass can dramatically reduce the presence of buffelgrass – just like what the volunteers and Intel are doing.
McDowell Sonoran Conservancy partnered with Intel to help eliminate the species. McDowell Sonoran Conservancy is a conservation organization with the mission to “champion the sustainability of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve for the benefit of this and future generations.”
“These invasive plant species are the primary cause of wildfires not only here… but across the Southwest, and even [in other environments] throughout the world,” Justin Owen, CEO of the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy, stated.
A revolutionary approach
Intel drone pilots take photos and videos of the landscape, so the conservancy and other Intel volunteers can first identify and label the non-native plants. Then, Intel engineers develop an AI algorithm that can swiftly detect the distinguishing features of the plants, including their shape, density, color, and distribution. Identifying these plants works like how AI-assisted facial recognition technology works among humans.
“What would take conservancy volunteers years to document through painstaking fieldwork, aerial drone surveys, and AI processing can accomplish in hours,” said Intel’s official news release.
Intel’s Magdiel Galan-Oliveras, who is present during the efforts, said people from various places like Arizona, Oregon, California, and even as far as India and Ireland are all collaborating to help prevent these wildfires using AI and drones.
Melanie Tluczek, Director of Science and Education at McDowell Sonoran Conservancy, said, “This is gonna revolutionize conservation in the valley, but not only that, across the Southwest as well.”
