A lesser-known effect of wildfires is the permanent change that can impact watershed areas. These changes might include land movements, loss of sediment filtering vegetation, and unwanted ash production. Ash swept into tributaries and reservoirs can feed algae responsible for the production of cyanobacteria.

Satelytics’ utility and watershed customers typically gather aerial imagery after fires to verify infrastructure integrity and to assess the environmental damage. Our AI-assisted algorithms analyze data in infrared wavelengths to provide alerts, alarms, detections, and measurements to immediate threats and challenges — without putting employees in harm’s way.

After a wildfire, rain and snowmelt can carry uncovered soils, ash, and associated nutrients into tributaries and reservoirs — sometimes months after the event. Larger objects and debris are also loosened by fires, causing land movements and landslides, as seen recently in California, further damaging infrastructure. These actions will likely drive numerous remediation projects. This is where Satelytics steps up for our customers with a suite of algorithms focused on identifying point sources of sedimentation, nutrient load, and even metals — allowing focused remediation at the earliest possible moment. Our land measurements can focus revegetation programs or identify subsidence around a waterbody.

These outputs can be sourced from one set of data and include:

As seasons change, wildfire disaster response transitions to the rebuilding of infrastructure. For our customers, however, the response is only just beginning. They now must focus on the secondary effects. Satelytics can help.

Contact us today to see how our tools can help you provide value to your stakeholders and keep your company in a brightly positive light!