Mast Reforestation

Mast Reforestation (formerly DroneSeed) is a Seattle-based reforestation company, offering reforestation operations, seeds, seedlings, and financing. The company uses light detection and ranging (LiDAR) and aerial imagery to identify forest areas that need reseeding post-wildfire. The company also analyzes soil quality, water runoff, and sun exposure to map out the most-suited species for each area and the best planting patterns for successful reforestation. Mast Reforestation also develops seed vessels to improve the chances of seed germination in a post-wildfire environment. The vessels are made of specialized fiber as a germination substrate and can contain other elements such as fertilizer and natural pest deterrents. As of August 2023, the company had operations in the US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

In October 2020 , the company became the first to receive approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration for heavy-lift drone swarms for operation Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS). The company's aerial planting is stated to be 6x faster than hand-planting seedlings and was able to cover up to 40 acres per day at a cost of around USD 275–USD 400 per acre in 2021 .

Further, Mast Reforestation helps finance reforestation projects through revenue generated by the sale of carbon offsets, with each Mast Reforestation carbon offset representing the removal of one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) from the atmosphere. This can further help to bring down the expense of each project, making this method of planting reportedly 60%–70% less costly than traditional reforesting. In 2022, DroneSeed hoped to reforest 10,000 acres and sequester 379,000 tons of carbon.

Key customers and partnerships

In March 2023, Mast Reforestation acquired Cal Forest Nurseries, a seedling supplier for reforestation, to enhance its supply chain and expand globally. In 2021, the company acquired Silvaseed, a forestry seed collection and seedling production company, to offer both seedlings and reforestation services. The company also brought on Element Markets, an environmental commodities company, as its carbon offset partner in March 2022.

In March 2022 , Mast Reforestation reported its largest sale of carbon offsets to Shopify (50,000 metric tons), to be generated by replanting 300 acres of forest lost in Oregon’s Beachie Creek fire.