For municipalities, maintaining healthy urban trees is crucial, yet often challenging due to resource-intensive manual inventories and reactive maintenance. Karlstad Municipality faced this exact hurdle, grappling with the time and cost associated with traditional tree management methods. They needed a more efficient, precise, and cost-effective way to manage their urban forest assets and proactively address risks.
Arboair stepped in with its AI-powered image analysis solution. By utilizing drone, satellite, and aerial imagery, Arboair provided Karlstad with a rapid, accurate, and comprehensive tree inventory. The results were transformative: over 36,000 trees across nine city districts, on both municipal and private land, were inventoried quickly. This process significantly reduced both the cost and time compared to traditional methods.
Beyond basic inventory, Arboair's analysis delivered high-precision mapping of tree damages, enabling proactive risk management—a critical factor for public safety and infrastructure protection. As a city planner in Karlstad noted, the tree layer information is invaluable for understanding how urban development projects impact tree coverage and key performance indicators. An arborist also highlighted how the damage layer allows for more efficient planning of pruning and felling directly from the office, saving time and ensuring targeted action.
Furthermore, Arboair's data helped Karlstad establish a baseline for achieving the "3-30-300" goals, a principle promoting urban greening for improved public health and well-being. This comprehensive data provides insights at the individual tree level for strategic and operational management, as well as aggregated data for sustainable urban planning.
The Karlstad case study exemplifies the power of AI and remote sensing in urban tree management. Arboair's solution offers:
Arboair takes care of the entire process, from data collection using drones, airplanes, or satellites, to processing and analysis using their AI models, and finally, exporting the data into your existing GIS systems.
The success in Karlstad is a testament to Arboair's commitment to revolutionizing tree management. As Markus Drugge, CEO of Arboair, states, "We work with municipalities to help them manage tree data and gain insights that lead to sustainable decisions." Karlstad Municipality is even willing to serve as a reference for specific inquiries.
This case study highlights how Arboair's innovative approach provides cities with the tools to efficiently manage their urban forests, mitigate risks, and enhance the well-being of their citizens.