PROTOTYPE OF PRECISION FORESTRY INTEGRATING RADIO-FREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION (RFID) AND GEOMATICS

ABSTRACT: The paper presents a prototype of precision forestry that integrates radio-frequency identification (RFID) and geomatics. This innovative approach records parameters of forest growth like diameter, height and crown size that are collected on a regular basis using an RFID system, trees are geolocated and the data are stored in a geodatabase. Individual trees are fitted with RFID tags and read by an RFID scanner. The data can be fed into a geodatabase of a GIS application that allows spatially-explicit monitoring and visualization. In the proposed system, a two-fold objective is prescribed, namely: conservation and production where trees and other flora are monitored for long-term ecological forest growth and dynamics in the former and tracking of logs from the time of harvest until the transport to the primary wood processing plant in the latter. An RFID-enabled tracking system for Philippine forestry will improve the verification of the origin of harvested products, thus, substantially reduce illegal logging by ensuring that logs are sourced from certified plantations. This pioneering precision forestry is the first to combine RFID and geomatics