BioCarbon Engineering

BioCarbon Engineering will enable global scale ecosystem restoration by planting at least 1 billion trees each year with drones. Each year, 15 Billion trees are destroyed from natural or anthropogenic causes. Despite heroic international tree-planting campaigns, there is an annual net loss of 6B trees. This short-fall is exacerbated because hand-planting is slow and expensive and cannot match the rates of industrial scale deforestation.

The system works in two stages: First, we make detailed maps of the terrain, nutrients, and biodiversity. We crunch that data through a machine learning algorithm and generate a precise planting pattern. This allows local ecologists to match the tree species with the correct soil conditions to ensure the highest yields and to establish a mix of species appropriate for local biodiversity.

Next, we upload this map into the planting drone. This flies at 2-3m above the ground and fires a biodegradable seedpod at each pre-determined location. The seedpod penetrates the earth, is activated by moisture and contains all the nutrients necessary for healthy tree growth.

Just 150, 2-person teams will have the capacity to plant one billion trees/year (at 10 times the rate and 15% the cost of traditional methods), and with the potential to scale to 10’s of billions of trees, each year.

Restoration at the scale of billions of trees per year improves soil, air, and water quality, increases access to resources including job creation for local communities and provides significant mitigation to global climate change.