Earlier this year, drone enthusiasts tried to get a landfill-turned-park in Charles County approved as a drone friendly recreation area.
Pisgah Park, a wide open space on the site of a former landfill, seems to some like a great place to test out unmanned aerial vehicles. It’s far enough from both DC and Baltimore (and their airports) that FAA regulations wouldn’t prevent drone activity. And it’s big enough that drone pilots would have 35 acres in which to play around with their unmanned aerial vehicles.
But from the start, the idea of a drone park in Charles County has raised the hackles of neighbors, who are concerned about safety, privacy, and noise. “I can assure you, wildlife will be harassed in Pisgah Park either knowingly or unknowingly by drone operators with this new proposed drone park,” one resident wrote to the local paper earlier this month. “I have seen first hand drones flown inside the Pisgah Park. They are loud and potentially hazardous. Rules are not always followed.”
The current proposal is to have a six-month trial period for the drone park, with a staffer on hand to make sure everything goes smoothly.
Drones are currently banned in national parks (though that’s not necessarily stopping people). But there are plenty of other places where you can still fly a drone legally. The Pisgah drone park, which is slated to open by September, might soon be one of them.
