Another Deadline Come and Gone for SpaceX Environmental Assessment

SpaceX is going to keep waiting on the FAA, as the estimated release date for the requisite environmental review of their proposed Starship has passed once again. 

The FAA has to complete the review, known in bureaucrat circles as the Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA), before the South Texas Starbase site can become operational. The agency published a draft last fall, initially saying the final report would be complete before year's end - 4 months ago. They blame an avalanche of public comments about the proposed operation, which flooded the agency with feedback that it is duty-bound to read and assess before moving on. The final report has been pushed off, one month at a time, since the beginning of the year. Now, as the April 29th date came and went, the FAA anticipates a final PEA on May 31, 2022.

The report is no small feat for the region, essentially bringing together a plethora of safety factors, environmental concerns, and operational impacts that come with the opening of Starbase. While impatience is natural, those in the know can appreciate the deliberate, cautious nature of the FAA, especially when it concerns newly designed rocketry. The public comments run the gamut of concerns, including worries over safety for those living in the surrounding region, the integrity of the desert ecosystem, and the historical nature of the region that saw the last battle of the civil war. Each aspect, whether historic, natural, or metropolitan brings out an enthusiastic cohort of observers, and until the FAA is finished with the review, SpaceX will have to sit tight until the end of the month, according to the agency's announcement. 

"The FAA plans to release the Final PEA on May 31, 2022," they said in a post to the FAA's stakeholder engagement updates. "The FAA is finalizing the review of the Final PEA, including responding to comments and ensuring consistency with SpaceX’s licensing application. The FAA is also completing consultation and confirming mitigations for the proposed SpaceX operations. All consultations must be complete before the FAA can issue the Final PEA."

Just like anyone who ever had to endure a seemingly eternal road trip as a child, "we'll get there when we get there".

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.spacex.com