SpaceX, the rocket launch company owned by Elon Musk, has become a co-defendant against an environmental lawsuit filed after the maiden launch of its giant Starship last month, threatening that losing the case could lead it to “substantially reduce” investment in the area.
After the launch led to a six-mile plume of dust showering the nearby nature reserve and local towns up to 10 kilometres away, the lawsuit was filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, American Bird Conservancy, the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas, Save RGV and Surfrider Foundation earlier this month.
In the complaint, the plaintiffs state that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the federal regulator of space launch vehicles, has authorised the launch vehicle programme of SpaceX's Starship rocket at its Boca Chica base in Texas "without complying with bedrock federal environmental law, without fully analyzing the significant environmental and community impacts of the SpaceX launch programme – including destruction of some of the most vital migratory bird habitat in North America – and without requiring mitigation sufficient to offset those impacts".
The lawsuit seeks the FAA to conduct a comprehensive environmental impact statement (EIS), a lengthy procedure that could potentially impede SpaceX's Starship operations in Texas for several years.
In its filing to join the FAA as co-defendent in the case, SpaceX said any extra delays to its launch program would cause "severe injury to SpaceX’s business” and cause potential harm to the "substantial national interest" because of the scientific advancements associated with Starship.
The company holds several major contracts with NASA, including up to US$4.2bn for the use of Starship for future lunar missions.
Launches of SpaceX’s giant Starship have been suspended by US aviation authorities due to the debris rained down on the local area by its maiden flight.
The FAA has grounded the rocket while it investigates the environmental impact of the launch, which is normal procedure, but concerns were immediately raised about the potential environmental and social impact of the blast from 31-engines during take-off on local protected wildlife.
SpaceX's take-off-and-landing site is located within the Las Paolomas wildlife management area, a nesting site for Kemp's ridley sea turtles and birds such as the snowy plover, piping plover and ocelot.
In its application to gain its environmental permit for launches, SpaceX estimated debris would only be expected to fall within a 700-acre (less than 3km square) area surrounding the launch site, which was far exceeded in the actually Starship launch, with reports from Port Isabel 10km away of windows being shattered and showers of debris.