Approval of Expenditure - Trinity F90+ drone.
Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), are used for environmental monitoring of plants, animals, flooding, and other applications. UAVs also allow access to areas that are difficult to reach by foot or vehicle.
The Land Grant Program is requesting to use USDA Evans Allen Research and USDA Extension Grant Funds to purchase a Trinity F90+ drone. The drone will support research and Extension projects throughout the Commonwealth but particularly in Eastern Kentucky. The drone will support research on strip mines and throughout forested corridors to facilitate cooperative, state-wide conservation efforts. Kentucky State University’s (KSU) remote sensing and forest management programs examine landscape-scale conditions up to thousands of acres in size. These programs include strip mine biomass growth and landscape-scale invasive plant assessments. These programs will soon include other forest health metrics. Acquisition of the Trinity F90+ drone would allow KSU to expand its land coverage monitoring for various research programs.
USDA Evans Allen Research and Extension Grant funds in the amount of $89,658.00 would be used to purchase the Trinity F90+ drone. Purchase would follow after Kentucky State University Board of Regents and USDA approval.
Interim President Ronald A. Johnson recommends that the Kentucky State University Board of Regents approve the Trinity F90+ drone purchase.
Approve expenditure associated with the purchase of a F90+ drone.