Environmental groups and the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas have sued the Federal Aviation Administration after a SpaceX spacecraft exploded during launch at Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, last month.
The explosion destroyed the launch pad, sending dust and debris flying for miles. Ashes were scattered over areas where the endangered species lives, according to the complaint filed in federal district court in Washington, D.C., today. The explosion also caused a 3.5-acre fire, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
The lawsuit alleges that the FAA failed to “take a hard look” at the environmental risks posed by SpaceX’s operations in Boca Chica, as was required by the National Environmental Policy Act. The groups are concerned that the increased risks of fire, pollution, light and heat from the program will affect the surrounding environment. “Allowing SpaceX to launch the largest rockets known to mankind is the type of significant federal action that requires full analysis,” the document says.
Allowing SpaceX to launch the largest rockets known to mankind is the kind of important federal action that requires a full analysis.
However, the FAA allowed SpaceX to submit a more limited assessment rather than a more comprehensive environmental review after determining that the launches would not have a significant impact on the nearby environment. The plaintiffs are now pushing the agency to complete that full review. They also claim that the FAA violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to fully evaluate alternatives, including launching rockets from Kennedy Space Center instead of Boca Chica.
The launch site, which now looks like a demolition zone, is located within one of the most biodiverse parts of the continent where many endangered and protected species live. These include Kemp’s ridley sea turtle and the piping plover, a small beach bird that nests on sandy beaches. There is also an endangered ocelot that is considered sacred to the Carrizo/Komekrodo nation, according to the complaint.
“Boca Chica is an essential component of our creation story. But we were cut off from the land our ancestors lived on for thousands of years because of SpaceX, which uses our ancestral lands as a sacrificial area for its rockets,” Juan Mancias, tribal chief of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas, says in a press release. Prosecutors are also concerned about losing access to Boca Chica State Park and Beach since the launches closed the main highway into the area.
The FAA previously authorized SpaceX to launch up to 20 rockets per year over the next five years at Boca Chica. According to the complaint, at least eight rockets have exploded at the site in the past five years.
in an email to the edgeThe FAA says it “does not comment on ongoing litigation matters.” SpaceX did not immediately respond to an inquiry the edge. SpaceX is not listed as a defendant in the lawsuit because it focuses on the FAA’s responsibility to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act, a key environmental law in the United States that ensures that communities can review environmental assessments and provide their feedback.