The FAA says it is monitoring SpaceX for environmental issues in South Texas. WGN 720 radio

McAllen, Texas (border report) – Federal Aviation Administration says it is tracking SpaceX and environmental issues regarding the company’s desire to launch giant spacecraft from launch facility at southern tip of Texas .

“SpaceX will not be able to launch a super heavy spacecraft / vehicle until the FAA completes a clearance process that includes ongoing environmental reviews and other safety and financial accountability requirements “FAA officials said on Tuesday. I wrote it in the Border Report by email.

“As part of this process, analyzes are carried out to identify collective risks, individual risks and danger zones on the ground, at sea and in the air. SpaceX will be cleared if it does not follow FAA safety regulations. “Sen,” writes the FAA.

The statement was released in response to a Border Report article Thursday, with local environmentalists briefing federal border community and nature agencies with an ongoing rocket test and a launch at a SpaceX facility near Bokatika Beach, in Texas. I sent a letter requesting data and information on the risks to living organisms. ..

The non-profit organization SaveRGV announced on August 30 that a giant spacecraft “risked causing unacceptable damage to nearby communities”, as well as to wildlife, parks and “parks with many endangered species.” . He also mentions the fragile intertidal wetlands that surround it. Sea turtles, etc. And because this spacecraft is much bigger and more powerful than the one originally offered by SpaceX and approved by the FAA for testing and launch when the launch facility was built in 2014, I want a lot of surveillance.

SpaceX wants to launch a spaceship on Mars. And say on the company’s website “Starship will be the most powerful rocket ever developed in the world.”

Jim Chapman, director of SaveRGV and president of Friends of the Wildlife Corridor, responded with optimism when he learned that the FAA had responded to the Border Report. But he said they, as a group, had yet to receive a formal response from the federal agency to the August 30 letter.

“How nice To see it in writing, ”Chapman said. “At least now I would call it a positive reaction because they write it down on paper and basically open to the public that they are responsible and present the requirements. “

However, Chapman wants to know when the FAA will release the information from the safety studies to the public.

The FAA in January temporarily blocked SpaceX’s launch in South Texas after a private company launched a prototype of the SN8 rocket in December without FAA permission. However, in February, the company was cleared to resume test launches after the FAA determined it was in compliance with “safety and related federal regulations … in accordance with its launch license,” the FAA mailed electronic report to the border. Said in.

Chapman’s group says the FAA should be tougher with SpaceX to protect border communities and border wildlife, given the violent test launch blasts at the Bokatika Beach site.

He also criticized SpaceX’s recent construction of a 480-foot launch tower and said it should be ordered to remove the launch tower built in June until the company gets clearance to launch Starship. .

The FAA warned SpaceX in July that an environmental review of the rocket assembly’s new integrated tower was incomplete and that federal agencies could order its removal.

“The FAA accused them of doing it without FAA approval and even said they could pull it off, but nobody thinks they will pull it. Basic This is specifically for the launch of Starship Super Heavy, ”Chapman said.

An FAA spokesperson told Reuters: “The company is building the tower at its own risk.”

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk criticized the FAA via social media, and in May the company said the tower was “not FAA licensed and used for production, research and development purposes, so no environmental review is needed. I think, “he told the FAA. Or an authorized launch,” Reuters reports.