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| Science & Technology |
| FAA PDF just released for StarShip Heavy and StarShip at Boca Chica TX. |
| 2021-09-18 |
| Title link gives the PDF. It is now open comment time at the FAA. |
| Posted by:3dc |
| #6 Public Hearing The FAA will hold two virtual public hearings to solicit comments from the public concerning the scope and content of the Draft PEA on October 6 and October 7, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. CST. Following the presentation, members of the public can provide oral comments. Additional information regarding the virtual public hearing, including instructions for joining, will be posted to this site by October 4, 2021. |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-09-18 02:03 |
| #5 So pubic review would be over after Sunday the 17th of Oct. |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-09-18 01:59 |
| #4 In accordance with CEQ’s NEPA-implementing regulations and FAA Order 1050.1F, the FAA released this draft PEA for a 30-day public review. The FAA provided public notice of the availability of the draft PEA for public review and comment in the Federal Register and on its project website. Following the close of the public comment period, the FAA will revise the draft PEA, as appropriate, in response to comments received, and a final EA will be prepared. The final PEA will reflect the FAA’s consideration of comments and will provide responses to substantive comments. Following review of the final PEA, the FAA will either issue a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), Mitigated FONSI, or issue a Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS.The FAA developed a project website2 and email listserv (which can be joined through the project website) to inform the public of the project. The FAA will update the website and provide email updates as the PEA and FAA licensing process progresses |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-09-18 01:57 |
| #3 Third paragraph: Draft Programmatic Environmental Assessment for the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Launch Vehicle Program at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, TexasS- 4 S.3 Public InvolvementThe FAA is using multiple methods of stakeholder engagement and public outreach to solicit comments and feedback regarding the proposal. The FAA conducted a public scoping process and is publishing this draft PEA for public review and comment. The FAA sent an email on November 23, 2020, to interested parties notifying them that the FAA was in the beginning stages of conducting an environmental review for SpaceX’s Starship/Super Heavy proposal. The FAA also sent an email December 22, 2020, stating that the agency was holding a public scoping period to determine the scope of issues for analysis in the draft PEA. The email provided an overview of the proposed project and the indication that the FAA would be considering the preparation of a programmatic EA as well as an overview of the FAA’s overall environmental review process. The scoping comment period was open through January 22, 2021. A total of 321 comments were received between December 22, 2020, and January 26, 2021. Concerns raised by commenters about the project included the following:•Potential impacts on protected species and habitat•Potential cumulative effects of the proposed project and other development projects in the Rio Grande Valley•Closure of public areas such as local roads and Boca Chica Beach•Level of environmental review (i.e., the appropriateness of an EA versus an environmental impact statement [EIS]) •Potential impacts on airspace•Potential impacts on minority and low-income residents•Potential impacts on land of cultural importance•Safety of launch operations given the proximity to nearby liquefied natural gas facilities•Degradation of the environment due to test and launch operationsPositive impacts raised by commenters included the following: •Economic benefits to the regional economy•Continued innovation and progress in commercial space transportation•Benefits of reusable launch vehicles•Job creation•Ideal southerly location All comments received during the scoping period were given equal consideration in the preparation of the draft PEA. |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-09-18 01:55 |
| #2 The intro paragraph to the summary link in comment 1. he Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is evaluating Space Exploration Technologies Corporation’s (SpaceX) Starship/Super Heavy program, in particular a proposal to operate the Starship/Super Heavy launch vehicle at its existing Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas (Figure S-1) and conduct launches originating from this site. SpaceX must obtain an experimental permit and/or a vehicle operator license from the FAA to operate the Starship/Super Heavy launch vehicle. Issuing an experimental permit or a vehicle operator license is considered a major federal action under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 United States Code 4321, et seq.), and the Council on Environmental Quality NEPA-implementing regulations (40 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] Parts 1500–1508 [2020]) and requires an environmental review. The FAA is the lead federal agency for this environmental review.SpaceX plans to execute its Starship/Super Heavy program over the next several years and may require a number of new or modified experimental permits or vehicle operator licenses issued from the FAA in order to execute the program. Thus, the FAA has drafted a Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA), which evaluates the potential environmental impacts of the activities associated with SpaceX’s Starship/Super Heavy program. The FAA is not licensing the entire Starship/Super Heavy program because SpaceX does not have the full details of all its planned operations at this time. The applicant, however, has provided the FAA with an initial mission profile that has been analyzed in this PEA.A programmatic document is a type of general, broad NEPA review from which subsequent NEPA documents can be tiered, focusing on the issues specific to the subsequent actions. The use of a programmatic environmental impact statement (EIS) or EA, and subsequent preparation of a project specific EIS or EA, is referred to as “tiering” the environmental review. The FAA has recognized that a programmatic review and tiering may be appropriate “to sequence environmental documents from the early stage of a proposed action to a subsequent stage to help focus on issues that are ripe for decision and exclude from consideration issues not yet ripe or already decided.”1The completion of the environmental review process does not guarantee that the FAA will issue an experimental permit or vehicle operator license to SpaceX for Starship/Super Heavy launches at the launch site. SpaceX’s license application must also meet FAA safety, risk, and financial responsibility requirements per 14 CFR Chapter III |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-09-18 01:50 |
| #1 Description and other details from the FAA |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-09-18 01:48 |