>In studying an overlay map of Falcon's Karoo Application area with a map showing the town of Carnarvon, it appears that Carnarvon, and the SKA are not even close to the Falcon territory, but are in the upper part of Shell's Application area.

You’ve got it right. Falcon’s play is about 200 km due south of the proposed site of SKA, so there is no concern whatsoever in this regard. Even shell won't be too concerned about the buffer zone. The buffer zone at its largest extent is just 2500 sq kilometers, while Shell’s 90,000 sq kilometer play is huge by comparison.

I think this Google Earth image will put this in a proper perspective. Falcon’s property is 30,000 sq kilometers, outlined in red.