Ethical considerations related to drone use for environment and health research: a scoping review

Abstract

Abstract Drones are increasingly used in environment and health research for data collection. Their unique capabilities, such as unrestricted aerial mobility and high-resolution imagery, can raise ethical concerns. This scoping review maps the literature on ethical considerations to inform responsible research practices. Five databases and grey literature were searched 1 June–27 July 2023 (n = 6426). An expert advisory workshop was held on 26 April 2024. Full-text records (n = 80) were analysed through four distinct lenses: (i) Research conduct, (ii) Research reflection, (iii) Community and (iv) Guidelines. Main findings reveal that: (i) Including qualitative components increases the level of community engagement. (ii) Ethical concerns and mitigation strategies were thematically grouped into: social impacts, privacy, regulatory, autonomy, beneficence, safety and technology (n = 16). (iii) Public support for drones is contingent on the purpose of data collection, with scientific use generally received positively. (iv) Ethical guidelines (n = 4) emphasize safety and technical compliance, with limited attention to community engagement. Ethical concerns around consent procedures, social impacts, institutional review board (IRB) classification, power dynamics, community benefits and drone use in high-conflict or complex legal settings remain underexplored in ethical guidance for researchers.