The Land Management Bureau (LMB) has recently approved and issued two guidelines that support the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS), also known as drone technology, in the conduct of land survey.
The development of the guidelines is consistent with the existing policies of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in improving the surveying and mapping practices using the most appropriate modern techniques and technologies.
The LMB Memorandum Circular (LMC) No. 2017-003 recognizes UAS as one of the instruments that may be used in the conduct of land survey, while the LMB Technical Bulletin No. 2 series of 2017 contains standards and guidelines needed in the implementation of the LMC. The policies took effect on January 26, 2018.
Drones, in addition to traditional survey instruments, can be used to survey and map huge areas in a shorter period. More importantly, it can provide graphical presentation and more accurate information on land parcels through high resolution aerial photos while still meeting the government’s accuracy standards.
The use of drones upgrades the conduct of land surveying and mapping in the Philippines. Drones open up the opportunity for land surveys, as one of the requirements in title application, to be conducted in a more time-efficient and cost-effective manner that can lead to an increased number of titles issued per year.
“Technology is going to be continuously updated in the future such as the possibility of our country’s satellite in space. We can dare to dream, and we must continuously adapt as time changes”, LMB Directory Emelyne Talabis said in her message during the drone donation event last January 2017.
The writing and conduct of related activities in the development of the guidelines were made possible with the assistance of the Technology for Property Rights project of the Foundation for Economic Freedom and The Asia Foundation. The project aims to scale up land titling by promoting policies, partnerships, and technologies. #