The proposed expansion of SpaceX’s rocket verification site in South Texas was suspended after federal regulators raised questions about how the company’s increased activity in the advertising area would endanger birds.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced Friday that it is delaying the release of an environmental assessment of SpaceX’s expansion of its Boca Chica launch site to verify a new rocket. Getting final approval is expected to count on the company, led by tech mogul Elon. Musk, taking steps to reduce the site’s impact on local wildlife, CNBC reports.
The expanded footprint at SpaceX’s launch would come with a solar farm, more release platforms, a power plant and other infrastructure upgrades needed for its Starship/Super Heavy rocket, according to FAA documents. The reusable vehicle will be about 400 feet tall and 30 feet in diameter and is at the center of Musk’s ambitions to make trips to the Moon and Mars more feasible.
Documents received through CNBC through a request for documents show that the expansion would be a critical habitat for wildlife, adding protected species through the Endangered Species Act.
One of the main considerations of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service is a major consideration. The U. S. Supreme Court (FWS) is how the heat, noise, and habitat disturbance resulting from expansion would have an effect on the whistling plover and sandpiper, two species of shorebirds, as well as the wildcat. breeds
SpaceX’s increased activity at its South Texas facility has been linked to a decline in the population of whistling plovers, and SpaceX’s proposed expansion would encompass about a portion of the 900 acres of sparrow-sized bird habitat, according to CNBC.
According to the documents, the hibernation population of the whistling plover more than halved between 2018 and 2021.
“It is known what happened to the ‘lost plovers’, but if SpaceX’s activities resulted in the loss of more than a portion of Boca Chica’s population, then the entire critical habitat is affected,” reads an FWS paper received via CNBC.
The FWS asked SpaceX to deeply monitor animal populations and restrict structure and release activities to express impact times.
The FAA plans to release its final environmental assessment of SpaceX’s proposal on May 31, which will determine whether or not the company obtains its expansion license.
But Musk has indicated he’s willing to wait too long. It said in February that it would move tests of the new rocket to Florida if it faced persistent delays, according to SpaceNews.
Newsweek reached out to SpaceX for comment.