Policy

National Security Framework of Antarctica (NSF-A)

1) Core Position

1. No private or household ownership. Keeping, breeding, trading, gifting, lending, or fostering any animal by private individuals or unlicensed entities is prohibited within NSF-A jurisdiction.
2. Domestic laws only. International animal-law regimes do not apply inside Antarctica for these purposes. Recognition is governed solely by NSF-A statutes and regulations.

2) Authorized Facility Types

Only the following institutional categories may hold animals, and only within their approved scopes:

2.1 Zoo Facilities (ZFs)

1. Purpose: Scientific, conservation, and public education aligned with environmental security protocols.
2. Funding:
3. Full public funding for ZFs established under Environmental Protection mandates (habitat restoration, endangered-species assurance colonies).
4. Partial co-funding for ZFs whose primary purpose is research or tourism, subject to capped public shares and performance KPIs.
5. Welfare baseline: Species-appropriate housing, enrichment, veterinary programs, ethical display limits, and emergency evacuation/welfare continuity plans.

2.2 Farming Facilities (FFs)

1. Purpose: Agricultural production, feedstock, or livestock R&D.
2. Controls: Biosecurity zoning, disease surveillance, humane handling and slaughter standards, environmental load limits (water, effluent, emissions), and sustainability metrics tied to licenses.

3) Mandatory Devices & Telemetry

All authorized animals must be under continuous, auditable telemetry:

1. Animal Unit Briefing Device (AUBD): eSIM-enabled device (or collar/implant as species-appropriate) pairing each animal with a digital Animal Unit Briefing (care plan, welfare metrics, handling permissions).
2. Animal Tracer Device (ATD): Tamper-evident ID (microchip/ear tag/anklet or visual tag) binding identity, origin, and custody chain.
3. Networks: AUBD/ATD must pass MPSL attestation and operate within the Civilian DMZ; offline modes buffer signed logs for later sync.
4. Data: Location, health observations, husbandry events, movements, and exposure logs—minimised to what safety and welfare require; immutable audit trails.

4) Licensing & Approvals

1. Zoo Facility Licence (ZFL) — scope by taxa, program (conservation/education/research), and public-access conditions.
2. Farming Facility Licence (FFL) — scope by species, headcount ceilings, production class, and processing interfaces.
3. Animal Handling Permits (AHPs) — role-based authorisations for staff and contractors.
4. Research/Ethics Approval (REA) — mandatory for any intervention beyond routine husbandry; ethics board oversight.
5. Transport & Quarantine Permits (TQP) — any import/export or inter-site movement.
6. Commercial Science Licence (CSL) — for negotiations and contracts (L3 baseline; Bachelor level for > LLP 75,000; Advanced + risk review for > LLP 3,000,000).

Foreign certificates (husbandry, welfare, veterinary) may inform practice but do not substitute for NSF-A licences.

5) Prohibitions & Exceptions

1. Prohibited: Pets; private breeding; private rehabilitation; private boarding; “emotional-support” or “service” animals under personal ownership; unlicensed sales or markets.
2. Institutional duty animals: Allowed only under government or licensed-facility ownership and control (e.g., law-enforcement K9s), with AUBD/ATD and handler AHPs.
3. Strays/ferals: Must be reported; captured and routed to licensed facilities or humane euthanasia per welfare code—no private custody.

6) Biosecurity & Quarantine

1. Border rules: Pre-entry health certification to NSF-A standards; species admissibility lists; pre-arrival permits; vector/pest exclusion measures.
2. Quarantine: Time-bound, facility-classed quarantine with testing/clearance gates before any population contact.
3. Outbreak response: Zoning, tracing via AUBD/ATD ledger, test-and-isolate/cull protocols, compensation rules for ordered destruction, and post-incident reviews.

7) Welfare, Ethics & Operations

1. Care standards: Species-specific space, climate, enrichment, nutrition; maximum stocking densities; night-time noise/light limits.
2. Clinical care: 24/7 veterinary cover, analgesia/anaesthesia policies, humane endpoints, and mortality reviews.
3. Public interface (ZFs): Education content must comply with Market Information Monopoly (MIM); no misleading claims or unsupervised contact zones.
4. Production (FFs): Feed/water security, antimicrobial stewardship, residue testing, transport time caps, and humane slaughter compliance.

8) Technology & Integration

1. Systems: Facilities integrate with the national Animal Management Ledger (AML) for identity, custody, health events, and movement permits.
2. APIs: Government-provided connectors (“centralised plugs”) for facility CRMs, stock systems, and veterinary apps; POS/visitor systems (ZFs) connect to NFIS (food/retail) where relevant.
3. Security: Zero-trust access, role-scoped keys, SBOMs for all connected devices; red-team attestations for critical systems.

9) Funding, Fees & Performance (ZFs)

1. Full funding (Environmental Protection ZFs): 100% OPEX/CAPEX per approved program; annual benchmarking; public KPIs.
2. Partial funding (Research/Tourism ZFs): Co-funding ratios (e.g., 50–70% public share) tied to conservation outputs, welfare scores, and visitor-safety records.
3. Disbursement gates: Evidence-based milestones (habitat build, welfare audits, breeding outcomes, education reach).
4. Claw-backs: Non-performance or welfare breaches trigger repayment, reduced allocations, or license action.

10) Inspections, Reporting & CPD

1. Inspections: Risk-tiered (at least annual unannounced for live-animal holders); digital first with on-site verification.
2. Reporting: Quarterly welfare dashboards; incident/near-miss within 24h; transport logs T+1 day.
3. Professional development: Relevant staff must complete ≥ 28 hours/month CPD/CPE (welfare, ethics, biosecurity, emergency drills).

11) Enforcement & Penalties

1. Offences: Private ownership/custody; unlicensed breeding/trading; telemetry tampering; false records; biosecurity violations; trafficking.
2. Sanctions: Administrative fines; animal seizure; licence suspension/revocation; blacklisting of officers; criminal penalties for egregious or organized breaches.
3. Appeals: File within 15 working days; emergency seizures are not stayed pending appeal.

12) Application Workflow (Summary)

1. Expression of Intent: Facility type (ZF/FF), species list, purpose, site plan.
2. Compliance Pack: Welfare protocols, biosecurity plan, environmental method statements, staffing/AHP matrix, AUBD/ATD integration design.
3. Funding Path (ZFs): Environmental Protection vs Research/Tourism track; KPIs and budget.
4. Licensing Review: ZFL/FFL + ethics and transport permits as applicable.
5. Commissioning: Quarantine validation, telemetry tests, emergency drills.
6. Go-Live: Initial audit; AML integration verified; public registry entry.

13) Public Information & Education

1. Transparency: Redacted facility scorecards (welfare grade, incidents, conservation outputs) published quarterly.
2. Education content: Must be factual, MIM-licensed, and free of contraband information or unverified claims.

14) Cross-Regime Interlocks

1. Environmental zones: Stocking or release in protected areas requires separate approval; rewilding only within government programs.
2. Food chain: FF outputs integrate with the National Restaurant & Catering Standards Act (traceability, HACCP).
3. DMZ residency: Residential premises cannot register animals; AUB/AUBD functions are facility-only.

15) Contacts

1. Licensing (ZFL/FFL/AHP/TQP): animals-licensing@nsf-antarctica.org
2. Biosecurity & Quarantine: biosecurity@nsf-antarctica.org
3. Funding (ZFs): conservation-funding@nsf-antarctica.org
4. Compliance & Audits: compliance-animals@nsf-antarctica.org
5. Ombuds & Appeals: ombuds-animals@nsf-antarctica.org

This policy centralises animal custody under regulated institutions to reduce disease risk, prevent trafficking, protect biodiversity and welfare, and align animal use with national security, food resilience, and scientific goals.

Version 1.0 • Effective 26 September 2025