Drones will have to be registered and users will have to sit safety awareness tests under new rules to better regulate their growing use, the government has announced.
Owners of drones weighing 25kg and over will in future have to register details of their drones to improve accountability and encourage owners to act responsibly.
Farmers have called for tougher rules on drone use to protect privacy of property owners in the countryside.
The number of incidents in the UK involving drones reported to police has increased more than twelve-fold over the past two years.
Complaints, including allegations of snooping, burglary “scoping” exercises, mid-air near-misses and the smuggling of contraband into prisons, rose to almost 10 a day (3,456) last year, compared with 283 in 2014.
Last year’s figure was almost three times higher than the 2015 total of 1,237 incidents.
'Sheep worrying'
NFU Vice President Guy Smith said there are 'exciting' developments in the pipeline for on-farm done use, but warns of dangers.
“There are exciting developments, such as crop applications, which could keep British farming at the cutting edge and internationally competitive.
“However, we are also very aware of instances of irresponsible use of drones by members of the public and have already seen the first instances of sheep worrying by drones.
“We are calling for government to address this and are hopeful that any new legislation will introduce measures to protect farmers and landowners from this behaviour.
“In any instance, we would stress to drone owners the importance of not flying near livestock, who react in very unpredictable ways. There is risk of causing distress to the animals, sometimes fatal, and it can lead to trampling.
“These actions impact greatly on farm businesses and we urge that care is taken when flying in areas of farmland in particular.”
Safety awareness test
In addition to drone registrations, a new drone safety awareness test means owners will have to prove that they understand UK safety, security and privacy regulations.
Drones represent an exciting opportunity for the agricultural industry in UK, are already of substantial benefit to farm business and are central to the government’s Industrial strategy.
NFU Assistant Land Management Adviser, Rupert Weave said: "The countryside has vast potential for drone use, with on-farm applications both by farmers and organisations such as the Environment Agency, as well as by utility companies for inspecting the infrastructure which crosses our countryside."
"These applications have numerous potential advantages for farmers, from economic and environmental benefits from more targeted management decisions, through to less disruption from utility companies."
Indeed, it is not only farmers who can take advantage of drones.
Rural crime in Lincolnshire now has a new pair of eyes thanks to a drone initiative by the local police.
