[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 17 (Thursday, January 25, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Page 4999]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01414]
[[Page 4999]]
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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Notice of Permit Modification Received Under the Antarctic
Conservation Act of 1978
AGENCY: National Science Foundation.
ACTION: Notice of permit modification request.
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SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is required to publish a
notice of requests to modify permits issued to conduct activities
regulated under the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978. This is the
required notice of a requested permit modification.
DATES: Interested parties are invited to submit written data, comments,
or views with respect to this permit application by February 26, 2024.
Permit applications may be inspected by interested parties at the
Permit Office, address below.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Permit Office, Office of
Polar Programs, National Science Foundation, 2415 Eisenhower Avenue,
Alexandria, Virginia 22314.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew Titmus, ACA Permit Officer,
Office of Polar Programs, National Science Foundation, 2415 Eisenhower
Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22314; 703-292-4479; or [email protected].
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 as requiring special protection. The
regulations establish such a permit system to designate Antarctic
Specially Protected Areas.
Description of Permit Modification Requested: The Foundation issued
a permit (ACA 2024-006) to Megan Cimino on August 14, 2023. The issued
permit allows the permit holder and agents to enter Antarctic Specially
Protected Areas (ASPAs), as well as engage in research activities that
would result in Take, Harmful Interference, and Import into the USA.
The permit holder and agents would conduct research as part of the
Palmer Station Long-Term Ecological Research Program (Palmer LTER). The
applicant would continue long term-research efforts to assess how
annual environmental variability affects seabird diets, breeding
success, growth rates, survival and recruitment, behavior, population
trends, foraging success, and seasonal dispersal. The study species
include the Adelie Penguin, Chinstrap Penguin, Gentoo Penguin, Brown
Skua, South Polar Skua, Southern Giant Petrel, Blue-Eyed Shag, Kelp
Gull, Snowy Sheathbill. All seabirds involved in this research would be
released unharmed. Up to four timelapse cameras attached to poles on
square bases anchored by rocks would be deployed to monitor penguin
occupation patterns.
Now, the permit holder proposes a permit modification to include
incidental mortality during research activities given the risk
associated with various techniques used on different species. Most of
the permitted research activities are unlikely to result in an
incidental mortality (e.g., censusing, mapping, collecting fecal
samples) while other activities are higher risk (e.g., stomach lavage,
deploying trackers). Handling alone is unlikely to result in a
mortality but due to the unpredictable nature of animal behavior and/or
human error, handling could result in an injury and subsequent
mortality. Further, the act of attaching tracking devices to penguins,
skuas and petrels is unlikely to result in mortality, but the device
could influence the animal's behavior, including aero and
hydrodynamics. The permit holder requests the following number of
incidental mortalities by species: Adelie Penguin (2), Chinstrap
Penguin (2), Gentoo Penguin (2), Brown Skua (2), South Polar Skua (2),
Southern Giant Petrel (2), Blue-Eyed Shag 1), Kelp Gull (1), Snowy
Sheathbill (1).
Location: Palmer Station area, Antarctic Peninsula; ASPA 107, Dion
Islands; ASPA 113, Litchfield Island; ASPA 115, Lagotellerie Island;
ASPA 117, Avian Island; ASPA 139, Biscoe Point; ASPA 170, Charcot
Island; and ASPA 176 Rosenthal Islands.
Dates: October 1, 2023--September 30, 2028.
Kimiko S. Bowens-Knox,
Program Analyst, Office of Polar Programs.
[FR Doc. 2024-01414 Filed 1-24-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-P