UAV/Drone Zoning in Urban Planning:

Review on Legals and Privacy

Norzailawati Mohd Noor, Intan Zulaikha Mastor and Alias Abdullah

Abstract The use of drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in commercial

applications has the potential to dramatically alter several industries, and, in the
process, change our attitudes and behaviors regarding their impact on our daily life.
This paper attempts to review a legal and privacy in urban planning context regards
to the use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)/drones provided by international and
local approached. It is including studied an impacts of these existing policies to the
usage of drones in the urban planning context. The review consists of comparing an
existing law, prohibition, restriction, and guideline in drone operation to preserve
safety and security of the people, property, and environment. Few items need to be
measure in designing the zones such as safety, security, and privacy based on the
technical and airspace aspects. Thus, by evaluating existing laws and regulations
practiced in countries around the world, it will assist in designing drone zoning
especially in Malaysia which able to manage urban planning practices and to
regulate a general guidelines of zoning drone based on banned/prohibited, restric-
ted, and allowed/controlled zones within the urban context and ensuring the
livability and resiliency of cities.

Keywords Drones/UAV
Zoning
Privacy
Law and guidelines

Urban planning

1 Introduction

The advent of new and emerging technologies has broad economic, social, and
personal impacts. Drones or robotic planes which are also defined as unmanned
aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), and remotely piloted
aircraft (RPA) are rapidly developed over past decades vastly for military and

N. M. Noor (&)
I. Z. Mastor
A. Abdullah

Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Kulliyah Architecture and Environmental
Design, International Islamic University Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
e-mail: norzailawati@iium.edu.my

© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2018 855

R. Saian and M. A. Abbas (eds.), Proceedings of the Second International
Conference on the Future of ASEAN (ICoFA) 2017 – Volume 2,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8471-3_84
856 N. M. Noor et al.

civilian purposes because of its low-cost monitoring solutions (Ivosevic et al.

2015). Drones are thus becoming increasingly important in the fields of science,
technology and society. Traditionally, When it first emerge, drones are use for the
military purpose in World War I and yet over time, especially these few decades
drone usage was introduced in the non-military sectors such as atmospheric
research, earth and weather observations, and also policing remote sensing
(Kennington and Berger 2014). The vast participation in the application of drones
in various aspects, there are in need of laws and regulations for the drone users to
comply to ensure the public safety especially in urban area. Urban area is the center
of activities, and public is free to have their own activities’ including flying a drone
for their own purpose with not aware that it can be disrupt and trespassing a virtual
boundary between urban community. However, lack of clear regulation to follow,
drones has been freely hovering in urban spaces and public areas causing dis-
comfort and controversial reactions by the oversight agencies involved (Rao et al.
2016; Schlag 2012).
The UAV/drone in Malaysia is expending in terms of its application not only for
government agenda but also spreads into civilian fields such as plantation, natural
resources management, safety and security, and also for leisure purpose. The rules
and regulation designed for drone/UAVs rely on few aspects that control the usage
such as, the surrounding condition, type and size of aircraft, categories of users and
safety and security, especially unclear border zone for drones to fly in urban areas.
Thus, bring this paper focus on a related but slightly different phenomenon: the
emergence of commercial drones in urban area that requires zones and specific laws
to be designed in protecting human privacy and safety.

2 Methodology

Understanding a subject as extensive as relationship between technology and

society requires a suitably broad approach; thus, we performed a discourse analysis
of various documents in order to investigate how various stakeholders perceived
legal on drones. Discourse is comprehensive concept that includes any practice by
which individuals imbue reality with meaning (Gee 2014). In the field of com-
mercial drones, we considered various stakeholders such as governmental regula-
tory organizations, judicial bodies, research institutes, public policy organizations,
drone manufacturers, technology developers, service providers, news organizations,
insurance companies, non-profits acting in public interest, activist for privacy,
activist for and against drones, public and private establishment drones users, and
individual users. We used an aggregate corpus of seventy articles published 2000–
2016, accessed through academic and non-academic databases and search engines
and considered the text produced by these stakeholders as the baseline, and use
content analysis to make inference. The text was then divided and coded based on
origin, purpose, and content. Finally, the inferences were classified into schemes
UAV/Drone Zoning in Urban Planning: Review … 857

that represented the facets of specific stakeholder and one that represented the
society response.

2.1 Legal Aspects of Drone Application: A Theoretical

Regulations for military and civilian drone applications differ considerably. Military
drones, which have existed for a while, have regulations developed over time to
cover only a limited set of activities’ in specific and controlled air space. The broad
applications of civilian drones, and their relatively small impact if compromised,
have appreciable clogged and therefore delayed regulations specific urban space
and private environment. Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) Malaysia stated that
UAVs operating in Malaysia must meet or exceed the safety and operational
standards as the manned aircraft. The civil drones, which not exceed 20 kg, are
prohibited in controlled airspace or within aerodrome traffic zone without permis-
sion of air traffic controller. Civil drones can only be flown within the operator’s
line of sight, and they may not use the onboard cameras as their primary medium of
sight. They are restricted to airspeed of 100 mph, can be flown at daytime, and
when there is minimum of three miles of weather visibility. Most importantly, they
must yield the right of way to any other aircrafts irrespective of whether it is
manned or unmanned (Rao et al. 2016).
Some specific regulation in drones; such as United States (US) impose a
Federal drone law stated that there are no enforceable regulations that apply to the
general public that prohibit or restrict all aircraft from flying within certain
parameters. In Section 336 Special Rule for Model Aircraft (2012), defined model
aircraft as unmanned aircraft that is capable of sustained flight in the atmosphere,
flown within visual line of sight of the person operating the aircraft and flown for
hobby or recreational purposes (Sachs 2015). Federal rules prohibit any aircraft
from operating in the flight restricted zone around our nation’s capital without
specific approval, which includes all unmanned aircraft. The airspace around
Washington, D.C., is more restricted than in any other part of the country
(Sudekum 2014).

2.2 Overview on Drone/UAV Laws

Currently, France holds the largest number of drone operators in Europe with over
1600 companies and has one of the most advanced laws regulating the use of
civilian drones. They imposed in capital city of Paris to be classified as a strict
no-fly zone. Small civilian drones are banned from areas such as nuclear facilities,
which are protected by a no-fly zone that covers a 2.5 km radius and a height of
1,000 m buffer parameters (MLV Drone 2015).
858 N. M. Noor et al.

Transport Canada regulated a UAV/drone regulation with sets a clear line

between “unmanned aerial vehicles” which is for commercial use and “model
aircraft” which is another category for recreational use. The definition of a model
aircraft is it must have less than 35 kg; it is individually owned not under any
company for commercial use; and are not use for seeking profits. The aircrafts must
meet these conditions in order to be considered as recreational vehicle, making it
subject to lower inspection by the authority. Aircraft, which do not meet these
criteria, is considered under the category of “unmanned aerial vehicles,” and it is
required for Special Flight Operations certificates for its operations (Transport
Canada 2015).
UAV/drone laws in UK are similar to the current policies of the USA, which it is
more as guidelines rather than a comprehensive set of regulations. Unmanned
Aircraft System Operations in UK Airspace Guidance (CAP 722) claim jurisdiction
over UAV use in the UK. Under this legislation, UAVs are divided based on their
use that both require permits. The weight limit for UAVs under category of “small
unmanned aircraft” in UK is 20 kg (De Castella 2014). Thus, the aircraft more
likely only requires a minor “Permit to Fly” classification, which is relatively easy
to acquire, but does limit in terms of airspace to fly and altitude limit. In this case,
rural area is more likely suitable for its flight operation.
Meanwhile, Singapore imposed a UAV/drone regulation through Civil Aviation
Authority of Singapore (CAAS) with launching online portal for drone operators
permit application and activity permit is required for flying drones that weigh more
than 7 kg for any purpose, business, or recreation (Kok 2015). Those who fly
drones for business purposes are required to apply for both permits regardless of the
weight of the aircraft. Recreation or research drones do not require a permit if the
weight of the aircraft is less than 7 kg (Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore
2015). However, an activity permit is required if the unmanned aircraft is using a
restricted or dangerous airspace or area within 5 km of a military base regardless of
operating height. If drones are flown indoors at a private residence or indoor area
and the flying does not affect the general public at all then there is no permits are
required or its operation (Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore 2015).
Brazil imposed at national level using UAVs to patrol its borders (Agencia
Nacional de Aviacao Civil 2015). In 2013, a company, XMobots, has been per-
mitted to fly the first civil drone for purpose of monitoring Jirau dam (Stochero
2013). Thailand regulates this application into two categories: sports and research
purposes, and personal use (Barrow 2015), which users are needed to secure prior
permissions and submit a flight plan. An exception is made for drones used by the
film industry, which is considered alongside the latter category rather than under the
former category.
Meanwhile, Cambodia put a serious legal action, after a series of incidents
involving hobby and commercial drones, Phnom Penh’s City Hall put an official
ban on using drones in Phnom Penh’s airspace in April 2015 (Parameswaran 2015).
Drones are only allowed to fly only with permission of City Hall on a pre-arranged
flight path. Tourists are still allowed to use UAVs outside of the city, but are
advised to exercise caution when flying drones in heavily populated tourist areas
UAV/Drone Zoning in Urban Planning: Review … 859

such as Angkor Wat. There are no known commercial drone ventures in Cambodia
at this time (Sovuthy and Ho 2015). Vietnam’s Law on Civil Aviation, Article 81
Section 2b, states: “The Ministry of National Defense shall grant flight permission
to Vietnamese and foreign military aircrafts operating civil flights in Viet Nam and
to unmanned aircrafts.” (Tuoi Tre News 2015). Recently, the ministry of defense
wants all drone-flyers, personal or commercial use, to have license in order to take
flight (Defense World Bureau 2015). The legislation, however, is unclear as to how
it regulates smaller civilian unmanned aircraft used in the country.
Indonesia introduced regulations that will limit the areas in which civilians may
use unmanned aircrafts. Licenses are needed to be acquired and new regulations
lays out restrictions on where drones can fly, and also requires drone users to
register their flight plans with the local civil navigation authority. The Philippines’
drone regulations were implemented in June 2014 with imposing a licenses for the
operators attached with evidence on experience and passed a training courses and
passenger being imposed with clearance and pay a luxury tax of 100,000
Philippines Pesos or approximately $2200 (Calleja 2014; Andrade 2015).
Based on the overview, we can conclude most of the country are aware on the
development of UAV/drone usage and future risk to the human, so that many efforts
have been done although it yet to success for overall; however, the specific regu-
lations for the specific areas and purposes should be develop especially in urban
area and effect to human activities’.

3 Analysis and Findings

3.1 Societal Impact of UAV/Drones

The common societal impact can be focus on the safety and privacy of urban
resident. According to Rao et al. (2016), his analysis found that there are three
broad classes of issues in drones that need a further attention. There are a safety and
security, conception of civilian airspace and privacy and ownership. Safety, the
freedom from harm is basic human right that are guaranteed and protected by
constitution of most nations. Currently, the use of drones in civilian airspace has
triggered concerns are directed toward both the technology and the user. Concerns
regarding the technology center around the battery life lift capacity, airworthiness,
and reliability of the drones. The primary critics with the flying of commercial
drones over public space are that small mistake could result in crashes that threaten
the health, well-being, and property of public.

3.1.1 Privacy and Ownership

The issue rises on the airspace over private property and standards and expectation
for its protection. In a public space such as a park or on a street, the reasonable
860 N. M. Noor et al.

expectation of privacy does not apply. Therefore, since a person is present in a

public place, there is also not legal basis to make a claim of a breach of their
privacy. The research about people’s privacy concerns is diverse and contradictory
in terms of theory (for instance, identifies 15 different theories of privacy online
contexts), methods (Van Zoonen 2014 discuss the usage of experiments, survey,
qualitative interviews and document analysis) and outcomes in particular with
respect to the (lack of) influence of age gender and other socio-demographic fea-
tures on privacy concerns. The same argument also extends up to an extent, to
private property that is visible from public spaces.
However, these laws assume that sight is confined to the eye level. Drones
disrupt the expectations of reasonable privacy since they are operated in a public
place, yet can capture images and sound from that are not traditionally available in
public. This gap in the law allows for the possibility of unwarranted surveillance
without fear of repercussion. Current privacy laws state that it is illegal to record the
interior of a home or owned building, even if the camera is placed outside. This
creates uncertainty since even if the drone is being flown within eyesight and over
the private property of the operator; there is the possibility of being in violation of
privacy laws since it provides a monitoring capability that is not yet legitimated by
the law.

4 Conclusion and Future Outlooks

The rapid evolution of drones for civilian applications has created several chal-
lenges; regulatory, safety, privacy, security, and the uncertain landscape for new
business models. This paper shows, in constructing guidelines for the application of
UAV/drones in Malaysia, that there is in need of clear definition and category of
users, types and air space the drone flown, in designing an area to be banned/
prohibited, restricted, or allowed/free. Majority of the guidelines and regulations
applied in many countries are implemented by taking into account all three items as
mentioned above; the user, the aircraft, and the air space. The general aspects such
as type of users able to define on what type of drones they are using. Thus, the
detail specifications of the drones are able to portray the ability and compatibility of
the drone, where the legislators able to find out whether the drone is safe to be
flown in different type of air space. In terms of regulation concerning the air space,
some country has very specific area where the drone is prohibited, restricted, and
allowed. In terms of zoning the drone area, it is crucial to identify the type of land
use and its activity. Some zones are fixed, such as buildings and gathering square.
But there is country that very detail in defining the air space. The temporary
prohibited area, for example, are not fixed, it is based on events and occasions that
held in that particular area in some certain timeframe. Above all, those law and
legislation concerning the applications of UAVs/drones are applied based on the
safety and security factors. There are pros and cons come along with UAV tech-
nology, but with a best designed guidelines and zoning for its applications will give
UAV/Drone Zoning in Urban Planning: Review … 861

more positive impacts and open to new findings in urban planning in particular, and
reduce the negative impacts and gray area in legislation statutes. As the population
of civilian drones and their users expands globally, the risk of accidents both digital
and physical is destined to multiply. The future success of civilian drones depends
on the ability of varied stakeholders to reconsider how this emerging technology
platform can be best harnessed to serve the broad interest of society.

Acknowledgements The authors greatly acknowledge the Ministry of Higher Education

Malaysia for a research grant on Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS 15-1850426),
International Islamic University of Malaysia for providing facilities and support in this study.
Authors sincerely thank all referees for their suggestions to improve the manuscript.

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