[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 183 (Tuesday, September 22, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Page 57238]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-23999]


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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION


Notice of Permit Applications Received Under the Antarctic 
Conservation Act of 1978

AGENCY: National Science Foundation

ACTION: Notice of Permit Applications Received under the Antarctic 
Conservation Act of 1978, Public Law 95-541.

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SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is required to publish a 
notice of permit applications received to conduct activities regulated 
under the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978. NSF has published 
regulations under the Antarctic Conservation Act at Title 45 Part 670 
of the Code of Federal Regulations. This is the required notice of 
permit applications received.

DATES: Interested parties are invited to submit written data, comments, 
or views with respect to this permit application by October 22, 2015. 
This application may be inspected by interested parties at the Permit 
Office, address below.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Permit Office, Room 755, 
Division of Polar Programs, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson 
Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22230.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Li Ling Hamady, ACA Permit Officer, at 
the above address or [email protected] or (703) 292-7149.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Science Foundation, as directed 
by the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-541), as 
amended by the Antarctic Science, Tourism and Conservation Act of 1996, 
has developed regulations for the establishment of a permit system for 
various activities in Antarctica and designation of certain animals and 
certain geographic areas a requiring special protection. The 
regulations establish such a permit system to designate Antarctic 
Specially Protected Areas.
    APPLICATION DETAILS:

1. Applicant
    Brent S. Stewart, Ph.D., J.D., 3889 Creststone Place, San Diego, CA

    Permit Application: 2016-010

Activity for Which Permit Is Requested

    Take; Applicant desires to visit sites accessible by IAATTO 
registered tourist vessels and utilize a miniature (<1kg mass), multi-
rotor (<20 cm rotor arm radius), remotely operated, battery powered 
(electric motor) UAS (Unmanned Aerial System) equipped with a small 
high resolution camera. The project will photo document Antarctic 
landscapes and the distribution and abundance of birds that occur at 
those sites. Bird species may include rockhopper, chinstrap, Adelie, 
and emperor penguins, and skuas, sheathbills, kelp gulls, and giant 
petrels, and birds may be roosting and/or breeding. ``Take'' would be 
unintended and unexpected incidental, brief, minor disturbance to 50 or 
less individual birds of each species (depending on the species, as 
noted in the application) during aerial vehicle flights at 25 to 60m in 
altitude, no further than 200m lateral distance away from the human 
operator, for no longer than 25 minutes in duration. The applicant has 
successfully deployed the equipment array over 75 times in various 
temperate, tropical and sub-polar environments, without wildlife 
disturbance.

Location

    Various sites visited by IAATO registered vessels at Sub-Antarctic 
Islands, South Orkney Islands, South Shetland Islands, and the 
Antarctic Peninsula.

Dates

October 15, 2015-October 14, 2020

Nadene G. Kennedy,
Polar Coordination Specialist, Division of Polar Programs.
[FR Doc. 2015-23999 Filed 9-21-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-P