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☆ ConocoPhillips' $8 billion Willow project approvals upheld by US judge
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Clark Mindock | Companies Need To Integrate Climate Reporting Across Functions To Comply With California S New Law | Henry Engler | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies US judge upholds approvals for $8 billion Willow projectGroups say they are considering an appealNov 9 (Reuters) - A federal judge in Alaska on Thursday upheld U.S. approvals for ConocoPhillips’ multibillion-dollar Willow oil and gas drilling project in the state’s Arctic, rejecting environmental and tribal groups' concerns that the project poses too large of a climate threat. U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason in Anchorage dismissed a lawsuit filed by environmental and tribal groups challenging the $8 billion project's approvals, which the U.S. Opponents claim the project would release hundreds of millions of tons of carbon pollution into the atmosphere, aggravating climate change and damaging pristine wilderness. The approvals give ConocoPhillips permission to construct three drill pads, 25.8 miles of gravel roads, an air strip and hundreds of miles of ice roads. The environmental and tribal groups challenged the approvals in two lawsuits filed in March.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Sharon Gleason, Gleason, Erik Grafe, ConocoPhillips didn't, Joe Biden's, Iñupiat, Ian Dooley, Carole Holley, Earthjustice, Bridget Psarianos, Suzanne Bostrom, Rickey Turner, Paul Turcke, Ryan Steen, Whitney Brown, Jason Morgan, Luke Sanders, Stoel, Clark Mindock Organizations: ConocoPhillips, New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, ConocoPhillips ’ multibillion, U.S, U.S . Interior Department, Earthjustice, Interior Department, of Land Management, Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, Environmental, of Land, for Biological, District of, Trustees, U.S . Department of Justice, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Alaska, Anchorage, District of Alaska

The White House calls clean hydrogen “essential to achieving the president’s vision of a strong clean energy economy" and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. by 2050. Some environmentalists call hydrogen a false solution because it frequently relies on natural gas or other fossil fuels as feedstocks. Among those selected were the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub, based in West Virginia, and the Philadelphia-based Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub. Other projects selected include the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems in California, which will produce hydrogen from renewable energy and biomass. Big fossil fuel companies, renewable energy developers and researchers in university and government labs are involved, too.

Persons: Biden, Joe Biden's, Marcellus, Sen, Joe Manchin, Perry Babb, Patty Murray, it’s, ”, Silas Grant, ___ Levy Organizations: WASHINGTON, White House, Energy, Energy Department, Democratic, Philadelphia, The, West Virginia Democrat, Partners, Alliance, Hydrogen Energy Systems, Heartland, Washington, Center for Biological Diversity Locations: Pennsylvania, California, Philadelphia, U.S, California , Washington , Minnesota , Texas , Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Illinois, The West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Virginia, Appalachia, ., Delaware , Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Houston, United States, Minnesota, Midwest, Illinois , Indiana, Michigan, Pacific Northwest, Washington, Pacific, Harrisburg , Pennsylvania

The two applicants selected are the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub, based in West Virginia, and the Philadelphia-area Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub, according to the person briefed on the plan who was not authorized to publicly discuss it before Biden's appearance and spoke on condition of anonymity. The Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub, or ARCH2, is a partnership involving the state of West Virginia and EQT, the nation’s largest natural gas producer, among others. The Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub, or MACH2, is supported by supported by Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as well as Philadelphia-area labor unions, university researchers and refineries. The Energy Department says the hubs will produce “clean” hydrogen, although its definition includes hydrogen produced with natural gas. Many experts consider hydrogen “clean” only if made through electrolysis.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, it’s, ”, Soni Grant, ” Grant, Matthew Daly, Marc Levy Organizations: Biden, Energy Department, Gas, Center for Biological Diversity, Associated Press Locations: HARRISBURG, Pa, Philadelphia, West Virginia, Delaware , Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New Mexico, Washington

WASHINGTON, Oct 5 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden's administration said on Thursday it will add sections to a border wall to stave off record migrant crossings from Mexico, carrying forward a signature policy of former President Donald Trump. Trump made building border barriers a central tenet of his first campaign for president with the rally chant, "Build That Wall." Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement that there was "no new Administration policy with respect to border walls. From day one, this Administration has made clear that a border wall is not the answer." In another major enforcement action announced on Thursday, Biden administration officials said they would be resuming deportation flights to Venezuela, which had been suspended because of chilly relations between the two countries.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Donald Trump, Biden, Trump, Alejandro Mayorkas, Mayorkas, Will Joe Biden, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Brian Snyder, Laiken, Eric Adams, Mica Rosenberg, Nandita Bose, Doina Chiacu, Jason Lange, Jeff Mason, Raúl Cortés, Dave Graham, Kristina Cooke, Heather Timmons, Howard Goller, Grant McCool Organizations: Trump, Republican Party, Democrat, Homeland, U.S, Reuters, Federal, Biden's Department of Homeland Security, Border Patrol, Texas National Guard, REUTERS, Center for Biological Diversity, Biden, U.S . Department of Justice, Democratic, New, New York City, Institute, Thomson Locations: Mexico, America, Starr County , Texas, Rio Grande, United States, Rio, Eagle Pass , Texas, U.S, Starr, Texas, Southwest, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Darien, New York, Chicago, Ecuador, Washington, Mexico City, San Francisco

McALLEN, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration announced they waived 26 federal laws in South Texas to allow border wall construction on Wednesday, marking the administration’s first use of a sweeping executive power employed often during the Trump presidency. The Clean Air Act, Safe Drinking Water Act and Endangered Species Act were some of the federal laws waived by DHS to make way for construction that will use funds from a congressional appropriation in 2019 for border wall construction. Starr County Judge Eloy Vera said it will start south of the Falcon Dam and go past Salineño, Texas. “A border wall is a 14th century solution to a 21st century problem. It will not bolster border security in Starr County,” U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar said in a statement.

Persons: —, Trump, Alejandro Mayorkas, Starr, Eloy Vera, ” Eloy Vera, Laiken, Greg Abbott, Biden, Henry Cuellar, “, Dan Stein, ” Organizations: Biden, Department of Homeland Security, U.S . Federal, Patrol, Act, DHS, Wildlife, Center for Biological Diversity, Texas, U.S . Customs, Protection, Democratic, ” U.S, Federation for American Immigration Reform Locations: McALLEN , Texas, South Texas, Starr County , Texas, United States, Zapata, McAllen , Texas, Lower Rio Grande, Starr, Salineño , Texas, U.S, Eagle, “, Starr County, ”

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A coalition of environmental groups is calling on the federal government to enact emergency rules to protect a vanishing species of whale from lethal collisions with large ships. The groups filed their petition with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Sept. 28 in an effort to protect the North Atlantic right whale. The groups cited a proposed rule from the agency designed to prevent such ship strikes by making more vessels slow down for whales. NOAA has yet to release a final updated speed rule despite proposing new rules more than a year ago, the environmental groups said. The right whales were once abundant off the East Coast, but they were decimated during the commercial whaling era.

Persons: “, can’t, Kristen Monsell, Katie Wagner, Wagner Organizations: National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, Center for Biological Diversity Locations: PORTLAND, Maine, Atlantic, New England, Canada, Florida, Georgia, East Coast

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A U.S. agency said Friday it will nominate the vast, federally protected wildlife refuge in the Okefenokee Swamp for listing as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Okefenokee refuge covers more than 90% of the swamp and is the largest national wildlife refuge east of the Mississippi River. Designation as a World Heritage site wouldn't impose any added restrictions or regulations for the Okefenokee. Ossoff said a World Heritage site designation would have both environmental and economic benefits for the Okefenokee and surrounding Georgia communities. Conservationists sounded doubtful that the World Heritage site nomination would directly affect the decisions of Georgia regulators.

Persons: Kim Bednarek, ”, Elise Bennett, It’s, Buddy Carter, Democratic Sen, Jon Ossoff, Ossoff, Deb Haaland, “ They’re, Ben Prater, Bednarek Organizations: —, UNESCO, National Park Service, U.S, of Liberty, UNESCO's World, U.S . Fish, Wildlife Service, Center for Biological Diversity, Fish and Wildlife Service, Republican, Democratic, U.S . Interior Department, Twin Pines Minerals, of Wildlife Locations: SAVANNAH, Ga, U.S, Washington, Georgia, Florida, blackwater, Yellowstone, Yosemite, ”, Arizona, of, Ohio, Mississippi, Caribbean, Twin Pines

☆ Side-by-side photos show 4 major changes made to SpaceX's Starship rocket system after its first launch ended in an explosion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AdvertisementAdvertisementMore than a thousand changes have been made to the rocket since and it is now "ready to launch" again Musk recently said. SpaceX's enormous Starship mega-rocket is made of two stages: the Starship spaceship and its booster, the Super Heavy booster. The Starship-Super Heavy launch system is made up of two stages. Instead, for Starship's maiden test flight, SpaceX decided to see if they could absorb the force of the flames with a thick concrete launchpad alone. The FAA will still need to review the changes made to the Starship launch system before it can grant a new license.

Persons: Elon Musk, Musk, it's, Abhi Tripathi, Starship's, Tripathi, Ashlee Vance, Vance, hushes, —, SpaceX's, LabPadre, SpaceX hasn't, It's, April's, Polly Trottenberg, Jared M, Margolis Organizations: SpaceX, Service, NASA, Super, Mission, University of California's, Sciences Laboratory, Flight Safety, FAA, Bloomberg, Boca Chica, CNBC, Texas Commission, Environmental, Center for Biological Diversity Locations: Wall, Silicon, Starship's, Boca Chica , Texas

☆ Tens of thousands march to demand end to fossil fuels ahead of UN climate summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

"If you want to win in 2024, if you do not want the blood of my generation to be on your hands, end fossil fuels." The March to End Fossil Fuels featured such politicians as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and actors Susan Sarandon, Ethan Hawke, Edward Norton, Kyra Sedgewick and Kevin Bacon. "If you don't stop fossil fuels our blood is on your hands." And the march, unlike others, was more clearly focused on fossil fuels. Signs included "Fossil fuels are killing us" and "I want a fossil free future" and "keep it in the ground."

Persons: Spencer Platt, it's, Joe Biden, Emma Buretta, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Susan Sarandon, Ethan Hawke, Edward Norton, Kyra Sedgewick, Kevin Bacon, Antonio Guterres, Athena Wilson, Maleah, Athena, Alexandria Gordon, Biden, Sharon Lavigne, Jean Su, Eve Ensler, Anna Fels, Vanessa Nakate, Megan Bloomgren Organizations: United Nations, Ambition, UN, Assembly, Getty, Sunday, U.S, Broadway, U.N, Boca, Center for Biological Diversity, New Yorker, American Petroleum Institute Locations: New York, New York City, Brooklyn, Alexandria, Sunday's, Boca Raton , Florida, Florida, Houston, Louisiana, U.S, United States, China, New, Vietnam

“If you want to win in 2024, if you do not want the blood of my generation to be on your hands, end fossil fuels.”The March to End Fossil Fuels featured such politicians as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and actors Susan Sarandon, Ethan Hawke, Edward Norton, Kyra Sedgewick and Kevin Bacon. “It is frustrating.”Protest organizers emphasized how let down they felt that Biden, who many of them supported in 2020, has overseen increased drilling for oil and fossil fuels. "You need to phase out fossil fuels to survive our planet,” said Jean Su, a march organizer and energy justice director for the Center for Biological Diversity. And the march, unlike others, was more clearly focused on fossil fuels. “The elephant is that fossil fuels are responsible for the crisis.

Persons: it's, Joe Biden, ”, Emma Buretta, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Susan Sarandon, Ethan Hawke, Edward Norton, Kyra Sedgewick, Kevin Bacon, Antonio Guterres, Athena Wilson, Maleah, ” Athena, “, Alexandria Gordon, Biden, Sharon Lavigne, Jean Su, Eve Ensler, Anna Fels, That's, Vanessa Nakate, Megan Bloomgren, Seth Borenstein Organizations: Sunday, U.S, Broadway, United Nations, U.N, Boca, “, Center for Biological Diversity, New Yorker, American Petroleum Institute, Twitter, AP Locations: Brooklyn, Alexandria, Sunday's, Boca Raton , Florida, Florida, Houston, Louisiana, U.S, United States, China, New, Vietnam

The heat is about to be turned up on fossil fuels, the United States and President Joe Biden. It features a special U.N. summit and a week of protests and talk-heavy events involving leaders from business, health, politics and the arts. Guterres has repeatedly aimed his criticism at fossil fuels, calling them “incompatible with human survival.” He and scientific reports out of the United Nations have emphasized that the only way to curb warming and meet international goals is to “phase out” fossil fuels. “We know the use of fossil fuels is the main cause of the climate crisis, coal, oil and gas,” Hart said Friday. “We need to accelerate the global transition away from fossil fuels.

Persons: Joe Biden, — William —, ”, Jean Su, Antonio Guterres, won’t, Biden, Guterres, ” Su, Bill Hare, he’s, Hare, Mohamed Adow, “ We’ve, Selwin Hart, ” Hart, Thomas Pyle, Brandon Wu, Su, Seth Borenstein Organizations: United Nations, General Assembly, Center for Biological Diversity, Ambition, United Arab, International Energy Agency, American Energy Alliance, Environmental, United, Biden, ActionAid USA, Twitter, AP Locations: United States, China, United Kingdom, Russia, France, New York, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Paris, Canada, Australia, Norway, America

Now, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Interior Department should work together to ease the damage, the GAO said. A Customs and Border Protection spokesman said Wednesday that the agency is working on a response to the report. An Interior Department spokeswoman said the agency would have no comment. “The wall saved lives and disrupted the cartel’s ability to improve their operational control of our country’s borders.”Environmental groups said the GAO report confirmed their earlier complaints. They said future repair work could benefit from more involvement by the Interior Department, a lead manager of the federal land where much of the damage occurred.

Persons: Donald Trump, ”, Raul Grijalva, Grijalva, Trump, Mark Morgan, Morgan, Laiken, Michael Dax, Emily Burns, Joe Biden, Damage Organizations: PHOENIX, Government, Office, U.S . Customs, Border Protection, Interior Department, GAO, Customs, U.S, Arizona Democrat, Homeland Security, Forest Service, Border, Heritage Foundation, Center for Biological Diversity, Department of, Wildlands, Sky Islands Alliance, Department of Defense, Kumeyaay Locations: U.S, Mexico, cactuses, Arizona, Texas, Washington, Southwest, California , Arizona, New Mexico, Sonora, California, Rio Grande Valley, Arizona's Sonora, Quitobaquito, Rio Grande

Utah state officials didn't immediately return a request for comment Wednesday. Spencer Cox earlier this year created a position and chose the first-ever commissioner of the Great Salt Lake in an effort to find solutions. The risks of a diminished Great Salt Lake aren't merely beached sailboats and wider beaches. It threatens species extinction and toxic dust clouds ballooning over nearby communities, the lawsuit says. Already, a pelican colony on a Great Salt Lake island has floundered after their island became a peninsula, letting in coyotes, Seed said.

Persons: ”, Brian Moench, didn't, Spencer Cox, Moench, “, Stu Gillespie, Gillespie, ____ Jesse Bedayn Organizations: Utah's Republican, Utah Rivers Council, Utah Physicians, Environment, Republican Gov, Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Associated Press, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: Utah, Mississippi, Environment . Utah, Salt, Earthjustice, Chile, Alaska, North America

☆ The Great Salt Lake has lost half its water, and a new lawsuit says it's Utah state lawmakers' fault
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Jesse Bedayn | Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Great Salt Lake has shrunk in half since 1847 due to freshwater demand and climate change. Spencer Cox earlier this year created a position and chose the first-ever commissioner of the Great Salt Lake in an effort to find solutions. AP Photo/Rick BowmerThe risks of a diminished Great Salt Lake aren't merely beached sailboats and wider beaches. AdvertisementAdvertisementAs the lake shrinks, it becomes saltierThe sun sets on the Great Salt Lake on June 15, 2023, near Magna, Utah. AdvertisementAdvertisementAlready, a pelican colony on a Great Salt Lake island has floundered after their island became a peninsula, letting in coyotes, Seed said.

Persons: Brian Moench, didn't, Rick Bowmer, Spencer Cox, Moench, Rick Bowmer Stu Gillespie, Gillespie, ____ Jesse Bedayn Organizations: Service, Utah's Republican, Utah Rivers Council, Utah Physicians, Environment, AP, Republican Gov, Chemicals, Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Associated Press, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: Utah, Mississippi, Salt Lake, Magna , Utah, Salt, Marina, Lake, Earthjustice, Chile, Alaska, North America

☆ If you're an American eating beef this weekend, there's a good chance you're a man or age 50 to 65
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Just 12% of Americans are eating half of all the beef consumed in the US in a day, a study found. There's a good chance beef is on the menu, especially for men or people ages 50 to 65. Beef produces an estimated 8 to 10 times more emissions than chicken, and 50 times more than beans. "Beef is an environmentally extravagant protein," Rose said. There's a way to cut back on beef in all of those dishes if you're concerned about your health or the environment."

Persons: Diego Rose, Rose, Erin McDowell Organizations: Service, Labor, Center for Biological, Tulane University School of Public Health, Tropical Medicine, Agriculture Locations: Argentina

REUTERS/Adrees LatifEAGLE PASS, Texas, Aug 11 (Reuters) - The leafy trees on Magali and Hugo Urbina's 350-acre orchard next to the Rio Grande river in Eagle Pass, Texas, should be bursting with pecans this time of year. Migrants for years have forged the river from Mexico to Eagle Pass, part of increasingly higher numbers of people crossing illegally in recent years. He has accused Biden of failing to enforce migration laws and said he has the authority to "defend" Texas' border. Immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility, with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) tasked with securing the border. ENVIRONMENTAL RISKSIn Eagle Pass, sediment falling into the river from the installation of fences and buoys is already altering the water's flow, according to environmentalists.

Persons: Adrees Latif, Hugo Urbina's, Greg Abbott's, Magali, Abbott, Joe Biden, Hugo, breastfed, Biden, Martin Castro, Laiken Jordahl, Daina Beth Solomon, Ted Hesson, Stephen Eisenhammer, Diane Craft Organizations: REUTERS, PASS, Texas, Republican, Star, Democratic, National Guard, Reuters, Watershed, Rio, Customs, Border Protection, of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, Center for Biological Diversity, Thomson Locations: United States, Mexico, Eagle Pass , Texas, U.S, Texas, Rio Grande, Eagle, Venezuelan, States, Mexico City

☆ DOT proposes new car standards that would modestly raise fuel economy and push the sale of EVs
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Gregory Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Biden administration on Friday proposed modest increases to fuel efficiency standards for the vehicles most Americans drive. The proposal fits alongside the administration’s push for increasing the share of electric vehicles on the roads. A nearly 700-page document outlined the potential options, including the administration’s proposal for increasing car fuel efficiency standards annually by 2% for cars and 4% for light trucks. The Environmental Protection Agency, which calculates the fuel economy estimates shown on vehicle window stickers, uses different tests that result in more realistic estimates. Soon after taking office, the Trump administration re-wrote the more stringent Obama administration’s proposal.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, that’s, Chris Harto, John Bozzella, ”, Dan Becker, Harto, Pete Huffman, Trump Organizations: CNN, US Department of Transportation, Environmental Protection Agency, Consumer, EPA, Alliance for Automotive Innovation, Center for Biological, Natural Resources Defense Council, Democratic, Republican, Obama

☆ Debt limit bill would speed completion of controversial West Virginia gas pipeline
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Emma Newburger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Lengths of pipe wait to be laid in the ground along the under-construction Mountain Valley Pipeline near Elliston, Virginia, September 29, 2019. A bipartisan debt limit bill struck by President Joe Biden and House Republicans over the weekend would expedite approval of all permits for a West Virginia natural gas pipeline and curtail environmental reviews under one of the country's landmark environmental laws. The Mountain Valley Pipeline, which has been promoted by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., would transport natural gas 303 miles from West Virginia to the Southeast, and part of it would cross through the Jefferson National Forest. The construction of the $6.6 billion pipeline is nearly done, though plans have been delayed for several years amid legal setbacks. Proponents say the pipeline is vital to bolstering U.S. domestic energy security, and that the plan was already near completion and set to move forward.

An aerial view of a Starship prototype stacked on a Super Heavy booster at the company's Starbase facility outside of Brownsville, Texas. Elon Musk's SpaceX is set to join the Federal Aviation Administration as a co-defendant to fight a lawsuit brought by environmental groups following the company's first test flight of Starship, the world's largest rocket, which ended in a mid-flight explosion last month. The lawsuit seeks for the FAA to conduct an environmental impact statement (EIS) — a lengthy and thorough procedure that would likely sideline SpaceX's Starship work in Texas for years. The company also wrote in the motion that "the FAA does not adequately represent SpaceX's interests" in the lawsuit, since it's a government agency. The FAA in a statement to CNBC said it "does not comment on ongoing litigation issues."

☆ Environmental groups sue U.S. over SpaceX launch license for Texas
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

May 1, (Reuters) - Conservation groups sued the Federal Aviation Administration on Monday, challenging its approval of expanded rocket launch operations by Elon Musk's SpaceX next to a national wildlife refuge in South Texas without requiring greater environmental study. SpaceX had vigorously opposed subjecting its Starbase to an EIS review, a process that typically takes years, even decades. The FAA granted its license following a far less thorough environmental assessment and a finding that SpaceX activities at Boca Chica pose "no significant impact" on the environment. The lawsuit challenges that finding as a violation of the National Environmental Policy Act. The lawsuit highlights a history of tension between environmentalists, who have sought to limit development at Boca Chica, and Musk, a hard-charging entrepreneur known for risk taking.

☆ Environmental groups are suing the FAA over SpaceX's failed Starship rocket launch over Texas
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Environmental groups are suing the FAA over SpaceX's giant rocket launch in April. Debris from the Starship explosion was hurled thousands of feet from the launch pad, officials said. SpaceX's Starship rocket exploded over the Gulf of Mexico on April 20 after soaring 24 miles (39 kilometers) into the sky. The launch pad is on a remote site on the southernmost tip of Texas, just below South Padre Island, and about 20 miles from Brownsville. It was the first launch of a full-size Starship, with the sci-fi-looking spacecraft on top the huge booster rocket.

☆ FAA sued over SpaceX Starship launch program following April explosion
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The SpaceX Starship explodes after launch for a flight test from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, on April 20, 2023. The groups argue that the FAA should have conducted an in-depth environmental report, known as an environmental impact statement (EIS), before ever allowing SpaceX to move ahead with its Starship Super Heavy plans in Boca Chica. Later, "based on SpaceX's preference," the lawyers wrote, the federal agency settled on using "a considerably less thorough analysis," which enabled SpaceX to launch sooner. The exact impacts of the launch on the people, habitat and wildlife are still being evaluated by federal and state agencies, and other environmental researchers, alongside and independently from SpaceX. Boca Chica land and wildlife there, namely ocelots, are also sacred to the Carrizo-Comecrudo tribe of Texas.

CNN —Environmental groups are suing the Federal Aviation Administration in federal court over SpaceX’s launch of its massive Starship rocket last month. ‘All kinds of environmental harm’Ahead of the launch on April 20, the FAA issued a finding that the launch would have no significant impact on its surrounding environment. Margolis told CNN that the SpaceX explosion proves the groups’ legal argument that the FAA erred in its decision-making. The FAA’s roleThe FAA licenses commercial rocket launches and gave the green light for the SpaceX launch attempt after more than a year of back-and-forth. When asked about potential legal backlash from environmental groups on Saturday, Musk was defiant.

Fish and Wildlife Service. Damage to the launch pad, the floor of which was largely demolished during liftoff, was visible in photos of the aftermath. SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Fish and Wildlife Service findings. The April 20 launch was days after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) granted SpaceX a license to launch the Starship via its Super Heavy rocket booster. REUTERS/Joe Skipper 1 2 3The report by the Fish and Wildlife Service, part of the U.S.

☆ SpaceX Starship explosion ignited 3.5-acre fire and sent debris thousands of feet, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Debris litters the ground on April 22, 2023, after the SpaceX Starship liftedoff on April 20 for a flight test from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas. Fish and Wildlife Service disclosed new details on Wednesday about the aftermath of last week's SpaceX Starship Super Heavy launch and mid-air explosion, including that a "3.5-acre fire started south of the pad site on Boca Chica State Park land," following the test flight. In the agency's e-mailed statement, a spokesperson for the Fish and Wildlife Service said that following the launch and mid-air explosion, "Cameron County closed Boca Chica Beach and State Highway 4 for 48 hours due to launch pad safety concerns." The road closures prevented FWS staff from "accessing refuge-owned and managed land" until mid-morning on April 22, the agency confirmed. Elon Musk's defense contractor designed its Starship Super Heavy with the ambition of taking people and supplies on a Mars mission one day.

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