Government of Ceará allows drones for pesticide application

The governor of Ceará, Elmano de Freitas (PT), signed a bill on Thursday (19) that allows the spraying of pesticides in the state using drones, remotely piloted aircraft (ARPs), or unmanned aerial vehicles (Vant). The project, authored by Deputy Felipe Mota (União Brasil), amended the Zé Maria do Tomé Law, which prohibited aerial spraying of pesticides and made Ceará the first Brazilian state to define this type of prohibition. The restriction was confirmed for its constitutionality by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) last year, when the Court denied the action filed by the Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil (CNA), as it believed the norm is “protective of health and the environment.”