Medical deliveries and award nights: Historic milestones for NACAS

The North Australia Centre for Autonomous Systems (NACAS) has been recognised for their unique role in minimising the damage caused by ghost nets on the NT’s coastlines.

NACAS received the People’s Choice Award at the 2025 NT Natural Resource Management Annual Conference for their Ghost Net Innovation project, delivered in collaboration with the Anindilyakwa Land & Sea Rangers.  

This research addressed the growing problem of ghost nets and marine pollution along northern Australia’s remote coastlines, which threaten biodiversity, cultural values, and marine life.

As of June 2025, 83.74 km of remote coastline has been surveyed, detecting 72 nets of varying size and condition.

The acknowledgement comes off the back of a medical delivery that showed the versatility of the Centre's operations for remote and remote communities.

NACAS became the first to deliver medical supplies via drone to a remote community in November following an urgent request for essential medication from Gunbalanya.

The team had been conducting trials in the region, and when an emergency medical delivery was barred from the community due to flooding in the East Alligator River, NACAS was able to collect the supplies and safely deliver them.

NACAS Director Hamish Campbell said the lifesaving delivery spanned 116km and completed in just 32 minutes from start to end.

“In 10 to 15 years drone medical delivery will become common, but this delivery undertaken by the NACAS team will always be the first,” he said.