Planet Earth is at risk of irreversible damage from pollution and climate change. The problems extend way beyond a single person littering. Some of the biggest environmental hazards come from businesses that are illegally removing their waste. This can be chemical waste, construction materials, biological waste, and more.

These companies will bring their waste to illegal dumps to avoid landfill costs. The illegal dumps will burn or bury the waste, causing damage to the soil and air in the vicinity. The damage then spreads into surrounding areas, contributing to global pollution. Governments have been working to crack down on such activity, but being able to legally charge offenders has proven to be difficult in courts. Since 2011, Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection has made policy changes to see that offenders are justly handled. To properly monitor environmental concerns, the Ministry of Environmental Protection established the Green Police.

Israel’s Green Police have the same jurisdiction as regular law enforcement agencies, with a focus on environmental enforcement. Their job is to make sure that all Israeli citizens and businesses comply with environmental laws. The Green Police has the power to run full investigations, make arrests, and hand out fines to any offenders. Just like many other law enforcement agencies throughout the world, the Green Police has also begun relying on drones to assist in daily activities.

Over the last year, the Green Police have amped up their drone use. Upon completion of each drone investigation, a public statement is released to uphold total transparency. In December of 2020, the Green Police announced that they had made arrests of individuals suspected of illegally dumping construction waste.

After receiving a tip of suspicious activity, the Green Police collaborated with the local agencies in the Tel Aviv area to carry out a year long investigation. Using drones and other technology, the Green Police were able to gather enough evidence of the suspects moving truckloads of waste to illegal dumps, as well as operating unlicensed gas stations and warehouses. In June of 2021, the Green Police released a statement on a similar investigation that was conducted in the town of Daliyat el-Karmel near Haifa.

Using drones, the Green Police once again were able to collect enough visual evidence to make arrests of individuals who had been operating an oil complex without authorization. With the footage collected by the drone, the police were granted a warrant to enter the building to collect further evidence and take soil samples to determine the possible extent of environmental damage. As the Chief of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Department for the Green Police, Eyal Yaffe explained that the agency has several drones at its disposal.

Depending on the type of investigation to be conducted, the Green Police will use different drones. If investigating near the ports, drones that are weather resistant are best, while small stealthy drones are better in desert environments. “Drones can go as far as 500 meters without being detected,” Eyal said. Even at this distance, the drone’s camera can gather the information needed by the police. Because of this, offenders are entirely unaware that they are being investigated.

While the drones have been a great tool for the Green Police to gather evidence for making arrests, Eyal explains that they go a lot further when taking these cases to court. “Most Green Police cases have drone footage that is very helpful in the court, by making the cases unambiguous,” Eyal said. In the past, prosecutors did not have enough evidence to hold such offenders accountable. Often judges would have to dismiss cases or let the offenders go with nothing more than a warning. Now, thanks to drones and the Green Police, those who do not obey environmental laws can be held fully responsible.