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SpaceX allegedly found in violation of environmental protections by state & federal authorities

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality reported repeated pollution of waters by SpaceX at its Boca Chica launch facilities.

TJ Denzer

August 12, 2024 2:05 PM

Image via SpaceX

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Elon Musk’s SpaceX has found itself at odds with environmental agencies in the United States again in recent weeks, after a warning from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and a report from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) painted a picture of the damage the space travel and rocket company has done to local Texas waters near its Boca Chica facilities. The violations described could damage SpaceX’s permissions and clearances to proceed with further launch missions and testing.

TCEQ shared its report with SpaceX over the last week, following up on a notice from EPA earlier this year that SpaceX had violated the Clean Water Act, as reported by CNBC. Both notices allege that SpaceX was discharging deluge water into clean public waters from its Starbase facility near Boca Chica without authorization. The local agency had seen multiple complaints in the city of Harlingen where the TCEQ’s office is located:

This isn’t the first time that SpaceX has been brought up on environmental protection violations. The company has had several missions that ended with its rockets exploding, either in flight or on the launch pad. On one such occasion in 2023, this resulted in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounding SpaceX until it could better its environmental reports and safety measures in regards to the local areas and waters. All Aerospace companies, SpaceX included, are required to be in compliance with state and federal laws to gain FAA approval for launch missions. With SpaceX seeking to carry out around 25 launches and landings of its Starship and Super Heavy rocket craft at Boca Chiva, it could face delays on approvals, as well as fines, for its violations of environmental regulations.

How SpaceX answers to these notices of violations remains to be seen. Stay tuned to the SpaceX topic for follow-ups on this story and the company’s response to environmental regulators.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.