Drones With AI to Identify Hogweed and Weeds on Russian Allotments
From March 1, 2026, unmanned aircraft and neural networks will be deployed nationwide to inspect plots and detect invasive plants.
Starting March 1, 2026, Russia will launch large-scale inspections of land plots using drones and artificial intelligence. At the same time, a new law strengthening penalties for land-use violations will take effect. Fines are set to increase two to three times, and repeat offenders will face even harsher sanctions, according to the portal Vse42.ru.
Drones Filming, Neural Networks Analyzing
Monitoring will take place from the air and from space. Unmanned aerial vehicles will scan territories, and AI systems will identify stands of giant hogweed and other weeds with up to 90 percent accuracy. All data will be sent to Rosreestr, the federal land registry. Landowners initially will receive a notice to eliminate the violations. If weeds remain, fines will follow.
Officials are placing special emphasis on hogweed, a plant that can grow three to five meters tall and whose sap causes severe burns. The weed also threatens agricultural land. According to authorities, infestations of this aggressive and toxic plant have been recorded in more than 39 regions. Fines for failing to remove hogweed will range from 20,000 to 50,000 rubles ($~215–$~540) for individuals and up to 700,000 rubles ($~7,600) for legal entities.
“Biodrone” and Leaf Beetles
In related innovation news, a Russian student has presented a biotechnological approach to destroying Sosnowsky’s hogweed. Instead of chemical herbicides, her project, “Biodron,” envisions deploying leaf beetles—the weed’s natural predators—by drone to settle on the plants. Developers say this method could help return agricultural land to productive use and serve as an alternative to conventional herbicides.
Earlier, we reported that a Russian student taught artificial intelligence to fight hogweed.
