How Solar-Powered AI Cameras Stop Wildfires in Georgia

Why It Matters

Early, automated detection limits ecological and economic damage, protects carbon sinks and communities, and demonstrates scalable climate adaptation technology for wildfire‑prone regions.

Summary

Georgia, where forests cover 40% of land and nearly 70% of Borjomi‑Kharagauli National Park, faces growing wildfire risk as hotter, longer summers accelerate fire spread. Between 2007 and 2021 more than 600 fires burned over 7,000 hectares, degrading ecosystems and threatening tourism and rural livelihoods. Solar‑powered AI cameras installed on mountain peaks now scan day and night, detecting smoke and fire early and relaying live data via satellite to emergency services. The system speeds response times, helping prevent small blazes from becoming landscape‑level disasters.

Original Description

In the heart of the Caucasus, one of the world’s great biodiversity hotspots, the natural forests of Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park stretch across high ridges and deep valleys. More than half the park is uninterrupted woodland - pine, beech, oak, and spruce. These trees hold the soil in place, cool the air, and shelter endangered wildlife like the Caucasian lynx. Forests, which cover 40 percent of Georgia, underpin rural life and the local economy.

But these landscapes are drying. As climate change intensifies, summers stretch longer and winds hit the slopes harder. This means fires now spark more easily and spread faster, leaving charred hillsides behind and forcing communities to confront the sudden danger to their homes and way of life.

To stop fires before they spread, Georgia has turned to innovative new technologies. With support from the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN), together with the Adaptation Fund Climate Innovation Accelerator (AFCIA) and the International Business and Economic Development Center (IBEDC), solar-powered cameras now stand guard on mountain peaks, scanning the forest 360 degrees, day and night. Linked by satellite to the Emergency Situations Service and the National Environmental Protection Agency, the system uses artificial intelligence to detect even a faint wisp of smoke and send alerts within seconds.