Permits and Environmental Consultation

Bureau of Land Management

Local BLM managers can help researchers find the best opportunities, based on the needs of the study. For more information and to determine if any special permissions may be required, contact the nearest BLM Field Office to discuss your proposed research. A directory of BLM offices is available.

Timeline & Form: The required BLM form is 2920-1, and processing can take 60-90 days. The BLM requests that the 2920-1 form be submitted as soon as possible once the NSF has recommended a project for funding.
 
Fees: The fees associated with the BLM permit will vary from project to project, but some general guidelines are below. Note that research projects based out of the University of Alaska system do not pay the processing fee or monitoring fee.

• Processing Fee:
  • ~$400 for a Category 2 classification
  • This fee is contingent on the number of processing hours estimated by the BLM for the permit. In general, most research projects at Toolik fall under ‘category 2’ for processing permits.
• Monitoring Fee:
  • ~$100/year for a Category 1 classification
  • This fee is contingent on the number of monitoring hours estimated by the BLM for the project. In general, most research projects at Toolik fall under ‘category 1’ for monitoring.
• Site Rental Fee:
  • ~$200.00/site/year
  • This fee is contingent on how many sites a research project has. This is determined by the BLM on a case-by-case basis. If sampling locations are relatively close together and have the same general activities at each location the BLM will likely classify this as one site. The BLM will likely classify sampling locations as separate sites if they are separated by a relatively large distance geographically or if there are different activities/land-use impacts at each location.

Completing the 2920-1 Form: Filling out the 2920-1 form in a way that emphasizes the potential impacts and hazard mitigation of activities being proposed will facilitate the BLM permitting process. When completing the 2920-1 form, keep the details regarding potential land-use impacts to technical specifications of the activities being performed; specifically, attention should be given to:
 

• Ground disturbances – this is anything that disturbs the vegetation or the soil (e.g., digging holes, trail formation)
  • Digging: If any digging is required, provide estimates of:
    • Number of sites
    • Area (m²) of disturbance
    • Depth into soil
    • Location of digging    
  • Boardwalks: The BLM may require boardwalks as part of the permit in order to mitigate trail formation or damage to vegetation. The researcher may identify/request the need for boardwalks in the permit application, but the BLM will make the final decision as to whether boardwalks are required.
    • Boardwalks may be required if:
      • There is frequent (e.g., daily) travel by multiple individuals.
      • Travel is over the same path (e.g., walking transects).
      • Travel to access field sites is for an extended period of time (e.g., months/years).
      • Heavy field equipment will be transported to the field site.
    • Boardwalks may be unnecessary if:
      • Travel to a field site is infrequent (e.g., biweekly, monthly).
      • Few individuals are walking to a given site.
      • Walking route to the field site can be varied each trip.
• Equipment specifications – If gear or equipment will be left on the tundra, the following information should be provided:
  • Amount of gear/equipment, including size, this should include both size (area of footprint) and weight.
  • Any equipment that uses hazardous materials (e.g. gasoline for a generator, caustic or corrosive chemicals for sample preservation, lead-acid batteries to supply power, etc.).
  • How long equipment will be deployed.
  • How equipment will be staged and retrieved.
  • How potential impacts of equipment will be mitigated (e.g. secondary containment for batteries, platforms for heavy equipment, bear fence to prevent harm by or to wildlife, etc.).
• Location – The BLM requires researchers to identify the locations of their sampling sites in order to determine the cumulative land-use impacts or potential impacts to archeological/historically sensitive locations from a given activity. This can be problematic because often plot-level locations are difficult or impossible to ascertain without on-the-ground surveying of the suitability of different locations. Due to the remoteness of Arctic research sites, pre-field season site surveying trips are generally cost-and-time prohibitive. The following are some tips for providing locations in the 2920-1 form.
  • Go big:
    • If the proposed activity needs to be in a general area (~100-500 m²), then designate the potential area instead of specific sites. Caution: Great care should be exercised when designating an area for sampling if this is the method used. The larger the proposed area the greater the chance of this area overlapping an archeological site or other research projects.
  • The more the merrier:
    • List more potential sites than necessary; therefore, if a site is evaluated as unsuitable by the researcher in the field, there are other permitted sampling locations from which to choose. For example, if a researcher wants to collect 10 soil cores based on a broad classification (e.g., landscape age, aspect, elevation), they may wish to indicate 30 potential sites to the BLM. Caution: Listing more potential sites increases the probability of encountering archeological sites. In addition, the number of sites listed should be reasonable. For example, listing 100+ sites will add time to the permitting process, as the BLM will have to evaluate each site.
  • For projects based out of Toolik Field Station, work with the Toolik GIS office to find potential field sites that will not impact other research or sensitive vegetation.

If a project is classified as ‘casual use’ then a BLM permit is not required. However, only the BLM can make the determination that a project is casual use. There are no specific groups of activities that fall under a ‘casual use’ classification. The BLM looks at the cumulative impact of projects in a certain area, so even if a given activity is classified as ‘casual use’ in one area, the exact same activity may require permitting in a separate location due to the proximity/history of other research projects and/or historically/archeologically sensitive sites.

• BLM lands Statewide
  • BLM issues Cultural Resource Use Permits (CRUPs) to individuals or organization that would like to perform research, studies, or fieldwork on BLM-managed public lands.
  • Additional activities fall under three categories:
    • Casual Use: Depending on the proposed sampling plan, activities might be considered 'Casual Use' (defined as activities resulting in no or negligible disturbance of public lands).
      • The time needed for Casual Use Authorization is approximately 1 month, depending on the season and obligations.
      • Examples of Casual Use include plot observations, active layer sampling, hydrological sampling, and minimal destructive sampling.
      • The BLM ultimately makes the final decision on whether activities are considered Casual Use or need to be further reviewed for an Authorization Permit
      • There is no fee association with Casual Use Authorization.
    • Authorization Permit: These permits are short-term authorizations (up to 3 years) in scope. Most permits require an NEPA review, which includes a BLM interdisciplinary team to review and process the proposal.
      • Authorization Permits take longer to process than Casual Use Authorizations due to the NEPA review.
      • Most proposals are categorical exclusion (CX) level NEPA. A CX is a form of NEPA compliance, without the analysis that occurs in an Environmental Assessment (EA). Occasionally, a proposal will require an EA level analysis.
      • Examples of Authorization Permit activities include the installation of infrastructure, extensive destructive sampling, and temporary boardwalks.
      • A small fee is associated with Authorizaton Permits.
    • Right-of-way Authorization: These authorizations are for periods of time greater than 3 years (e.g., construction of boardwalks).
      • These authorizations will undergo similar review as the Authorization Permits but with a more comprehensive NEPA review.
      • Examples of Right-of-Way Authorizations are construction of permanent meteorological stations, greenhouses, snow fences, and other kinds of long lasting infrastructure.
      • A large fee is associated with Right-of-Way Authorizations.

* Note: Boardwalks are required by the BLM in some situations, depending on how often the site will be accessed, the type of landscape, and how many people will be accessing the site. There will be additional costs involved if boardwalks are deemed necessary, in addition to the cost of installing the boardwalks.

National Park Service Lands

When doing research in a national park, a researcher must obtain an NPS Scientific Research and Collecting Permit. The NPS uses the web served Research Permit and Reporting System (RPRS) to administer scientific studies and collecting activities within units of the National Park System.
For more information on permitting in national parks:  

State Lands

Permits from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources (AK DNR) are needed if you are going to (1) place monitoring equipment on the landscape for more than 2 weeks; (2) stage a camp in one or more locations for more than 2 weeks; or (3) conduct off-road travel to reach a study site.

Land use permits are authorizations issued to use state land, on a temporary basis, for a variety of purposes. The permits range in duration from 1 to 5 years. They are intended for temporary, non-permanent uses such as floating lodges, log storage, scientific research, guide camps, equipment storage, and commercial recreation uses.

Archaeology on State Lands needs a State Cultural Resource Investigation Permit (SCRIP) application.

For more information on State permitting, check out the land use permitting page AK DNR Land Use Permit.

Applications typically take 4-6 weeks to process and have a public notice period for review.

Wildlife Refuges (Fish and Wildlife Service)

A Special Use Permit is required for all scientific studies or research activities occurring on National Wildlife Refuges where the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is not an active participant in the activity.

More information can be found at Scientific Research Permits - Arctic - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (fws.gov).

Tribal Consultation

In accordance with the Constitution of the United States, treaties, statutes, Executive Orders, and court decisions, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is committed to respecting the sovereignty and self-governance of federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations (Tribal Nations). The NSF expects researchers to adhere to the Principles for the Conduct of Research in the Arctic, a set of research principles from the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC) that emphasizes appropriate behavior, communication, and stewardship practices when working on or near Tribal lands, in communities, and/or with Indigenous Peoples.

Fieldwork in Alaska is especially susceptible to tribal consultation as Alaska is home to 40% of federally-recognized Tribal Nations. The NSF encourages community engagement and communication with local communities prior to an/or during fieldwork, this consultation may result in an agreement to share results or project outcomes. Indigenous partners are integral to co-production of new knowledge, community-based participatory research, community-based observing or other approaches to engagement between researchers and Indigenous communities. The Arctic Sciences Section developed a special call for proposals to support engagement through the Dear Colleague Letter: Potential Support for Community Hubs for Collaborations Between NSF-funded Arctic Researchers  and Arctic Residents.

Resources to help identify indigenous communities and tribes.

• To check the land owner: Lands, Minerals and Realty (arcgis.com)
• To identify federally recognized tribes, native village corporations, and municipalities by community: Alaska Entity Contacts Directory (arcgis.com)
• To search for tribes by county: TDAT (hud.gov)
• Contacts for Tribal Leaders: Tribal Leaders Directory | Indian Affairs (bia.gov)
• To search for native lands: Native-Land.ca | Our home on native land
• To determine regional corporations: Statewide Regional Corporations Alaska Native Regional Corporation Boundary PDF (alaska.gov)

Forest Service Land

To apply for a special use permit on Forest Service land, you’ll need to contact the specific forest service office where research will take place.