Toronto councillors eye permits for drone use
Drone user's plea that Torontonians have no right to privacy in public fails to stop them from studying regulations.
Thestar.com
April 22, 2015
By David Rider
City councillors want to explore the idea of forcing aerial drone operators to get permits and comply with restrictions on flying them over outdoor city spaces including playgrounds.
Mayor John Tory’s executive committee unanimously approved Councillor James Pasternak’s motion asking city staff to report back on a “strategy governing the use of drones in the City of Toronto's outdoor spaces.”
The rules could apply to residents with increasingly popular recreational drones now exempt from many Transport Canada restrictions on larger commercial drones used for film production and other tasks.
City staff are to report back on a strategy to include, but not be limited to:
- Any current policies that can be leveraged to ensure the safety of Toronto's airspace.
- Any safety concerns or potential liability issues the City could face due to the use of drones on City of Toronto property.
- Investigating the need for possible restrictions on the use of drones and photography above outdoor recreation and park facilities;
- The potential to permit the use of drones in designated spaces.
- Restrictions on the types and/or models of drones that can be operated in the City of Toronto.
In a letter, Pasternak noted incidents which a drone crashed on to the White House Lawn and another near Pearson International Airport forced a pilot to change its landing path.
In an interview, Pasternak said city governments have to get ahead of the rapidly changing technology, especially the camera capabilities.
“We’re not necessarily asking for permits or hyper-regulation - we’re asking for some kind of framework in which we can monitor the growth and use of it,” he said. “There’s safety issues, there’s personal privacy issues...”
Miroslav Glavic told executive committee that he has used his recreational drone to make videos at the Scarborough Bluffs. The city has no business trying to regulate the devices, he said.
“When you are in public, you have no right to privacy,” Glavic said, adding that using a drone with a camera in public is no different than holding up a smartphone and snapping a photo in Yonge-Dundas Square.
Transport Canada already restricts the use of drones near airports, military facilities and other sensitive sites, he added.
