The Andalusian Government's Ministry of Sustainability and Environment has taken a further step in modernizing the Andalusian Environmental Agents Corps by integrating the use of drones into their daily work of monitoring, protecting, and safeguarding natural lands. This incorporation, which responds to a process initiated in 2022, has reached its full consolidation in 2025, allowing improve the efficiency and capacity of these professionals.
New tool for more effective surveillance
The creation of the Drone UnitThe Andalusian Environmental Monitoring Unit, composed of Environmental Agents specially trained in the professional use of these aircraft, has represented a qualitative leap in the provision of public environmental monitoring services. With this measure, the Andalusian Government reinforces its commitment to environmental conservation and to strengthening the technical resources of this group.
The agents assigned to this unit have the EASA Operator Certificate, an accreditation that authorizes them to operate aircraft designed under the regulations of the European Aviation Safety Agency. This initial level of training has allowed them to apply drones in tasks such as:
-
Monitoring of work carried out in the natural environment
-
On-site control of administrative files
-
Monitoring wildlife censuses
-
Assessment of vegetation status
These actions have increased the force's response capacity and efficiency, as well as improved the monitoring of Andalusia's natural environment.
New capabilities for complex interventions
As a result of the experience accumulated over these years, the Ministry of Sustainability and Environment has promoted a new milestone: the obtaining by the collective of the Non-EASA Certificate, which enables the use of drones in more specialized operations, such as those linked to military contexts, patrols, or police surveillance.
Thanks to this new level of training, Andalusian Environmental Agents will be able to actively participate in emergency tasks, such as forest fires, floods, or the search for missing persons. This functional evolution significantly expands the body's intervention possibilities, consolidating it as a key player in environmental protection and territorial security.
Environmental modernization at the service of society
The incorporation of drones is part of a more ambitious strategy led by the Andalusian Government, focused on the modernization and technological development of the environment in AndalusiaThis commitment includes the digitalization of processes, the use of environmental data analysis tools, and the automation of administrative tasks.
For Andalusian Environmental Agents, many of whose functions are carried out in rural and hard-to-reach environments, these technologies allow:
-
Access to real-time information from any location
-
Greater precision in data management and analysis
-
Reduction in processing times for reports and actions
-
Improvement in the planning and monitoring of interventions
A key body for preserving biodiversity
Andalusia's Environmental Agents play an essential role in protecting the region's rich natural heritage., which encompasses natural parks, forest areas, highly biodiverse ecosystems, and protected species. The technological advancement promoted by Juanma Moreno's government provides them with more effective tools to address the environmental challenges of the 21st century.
With the consolidation of the Drone Unit, the Andalusian Government not only improves the operational capacity of this body, but also is moving towards a more intelligent, effective environmental management model aligned with European standards.
The commitment to the environment, the prevention of natural emergencies and the protection of forest resources are thus reinforced through a strategic vision that places technology at the service of conservation.
