[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 14 (Monday, January 25, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6921-6922]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-01471]


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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.

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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 in 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 February 24, 2021. 
This application may be inspected by interested parties at the Permit 
Office, address below.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Permit Office, Office of

[[Page 6922]]

Polar Programs, National Science Foundation, 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, 
Alexandria, Virginia 22314.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nature McGinn, ACA Permit Officer, at 
the above address, 703-292-8030, or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Science Foundation, as directed 
by the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978 (Pub. L. 95-541, 45 CFR 670), 
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

Permit Application: 2021-008

1. Applicant: Michael Gooseff, 4001 Discovery Dr., Boulder, CO 80303.

    Activity for Which Permit is Requested: Enter Antarctic Specially 
Protected Areas. The applicant and agents would enter ASPA 131, Canada 
Glacier, Lake Fryxell, to continue operation of a previously installed, 
continuously recording stream gauge station, perform maintenance, 
conduct stream flow measurements and collect water quality samples near 
the stream gauge site. The applicant would collect water quality 
samples of the melt-water of the Canada Glacier and along the length of 
the stream to study in-stream biogeochemical processes. The applicant 
would collect a maximum of five moss samples per year using a 3 cm 
corer to a depth of about 3 cm and a maximum of five soil samples of 
approximately 200 g per year from which to extract nematodes. 
Photography, LIDAR, and other survey and monitoring techniques may be 
used to detect changes in the stream bed and algal mat distribution 
over time, and/or to monitor the change in the stream gauge system 
through time. The applicant and agents would also to enter ASPA 172, 
Lower Taylor Glacier and Blood Falls, to continue measurements of the 
Santa Fe Stream including: Stream-flow using velocity meters; pH, 
temperature, and conductivity via meters; and collection of water 
quality samples. The collection of water from the Blood Falls area 
would occur on the glacial moraine, not the glacier itself, and the 
sample would be small (<1 L) and comprised of both brine reservoir 
discharge (when present) and surface ice melt-water.
    Location: ASPA 131, Canada Glacier, Lake Fryxell, Taylor Valley, 
Victoria Land; ASPA 172, Lower Taylor Glacier and Blood Falls, Taylor 
Valley, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Victoria Land; McMurdo Dry Valleys, 
Antarctica.
    Dates of Permitted Activities: February 28, 2021-February 28, 2026.

Permit Application: 2021-009

2. Applicant: Daniel Costa, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology 
Department, University of California Santa Cruz, 115 McAllister Way, 
Santa Cruz, CA 95062.

    Activity for Which Permit is Requested: Take, Harmful Interference, 
Enter Antarctic Specially Protected Areas, Import into USA. The 
applicant proposes to study the foraging behavior, habitat utilization, 
and physiology of leopard seals, and potentially additional Antarctic 
seal species, near Cape Shirreff in the Antarctic Peninsula. Additional 
seal species could include: Crabeater seals, Weddell seals, Antarctic 
fur seals, Ross seals, and southern elephant seals. The applicant would 
capture and tag 10-15 seals of each species, in each field season. 
Seals would be sedated and anesthetized during tagging and biological 
sample collection procedures. The tags to be attached to the seals with 
marine epoxy include a combined time-depth recorder and GPS receiver 
and a separate VHF radio tag. Other procedures would include: Flipper 
tagging, dye marking, collecting blood samples, measuring blood volume, 
measuring girth and length, and determining body composition by 
morphometric measurements. These procedures are currently authorized 
under National Marine Fisheries Service Marine Mammal Protection Act 
Permit No. 19439.
    Location: ASPA 149, Cape Shirreff, Livingston Island, South 
Shetland Islands, Antarctic Peninsula.
    Dates of Permitted Activities: April 1, 2021-December 31, 2023.

Erika N. Davis,
Program Specialist, Office of Polar Programs.
[FR Doc. 2021-01471 Filed 1-22-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-P