(a) Any person in possession of a valid permit issued by the Director, in consultation with the ASDOC, in accordance with this section and § 922.48, may conduct an activity otherwise prohibited by § 922.103, § 922.104, and § 922.105 in the Sanctuary if such activity is judged not to cause long-term or irreparable harm to the resources of the Sanctuary, and is:
(1) Related to research involving Sanctuary resources designed to enhance understanding of the Sanctuary environment or to improve resource management decisionmaking;
(2) Intended to further the educational value of the Sanctuary and thereby enhance understanding of the Sanctuary environmental or improve resource management decisionmaking;
(3) Intended to further the management of the Sanctuary; or
(4) For salvage or recovery operations.
(b) Permit applications shall be addressed to the Director, Office National Marine Sanctuaries; ATTN: Sanctuary Superintendent, American Samoa National Marine Sanctuary, P.O. Box 4318, Pago Pago, AS 96799.
(c) In considering whether to grant a permit, the Director shall evaluate such matters as:
(1) The general professional and financial responsibility of the applicant;
(2) The appropriateness of the methods being proposed for the purpose(s) of the activity;
(3) The extent to which the conduct of any permitted activity may diminish or enhance the value of the Sanctuary as a source of recreation, education, or scientific information; and
(4) The end value of the activity.
(d) In addition to meeting the criteria in this section and § 922.48, the applicant also must demonstrate to the Director that:
(1) The activity shall be conducted with adequate safeguards for the environment; and
(2) The environment shall be returned to, or will regenerate to, the condition which existed before the activity occurred.
(e) The Director may, at his or her discretion, grant a permit which has been applied for pursuant to this section, in whole or in part, and subject the permit to such condition(s) as he or she deems necessary.