On Thursday eventing June 13, 2024 the Kennedy Space Center along with NASA and SpaceX hosted a forum for concerned citizens regarding the impact of the proposed Starship launches. SpaceX had proposed launching the rocket (which is primarily cargo) about 44 times per year. These launches would be from pad 39A which is the northernmost launch site.
Like most of these kind of presentations, it’s a requirement the public is informed and they have requested public input as well. I would imagine about 50 people showed up to find out just what the proposal is all about… and it was very well done. We had an opportunity to ask a lot of questions and we also received a lot of good answers. Both NASA and SpaceX are putting a lot of thought into this and the planning is being done well.
Of course it also means that the access to Canaveral Seashore will be shut down several times per year as the restricted area around the launch site becomes active. I’m sure once all this happens there will be a lot more than 50 people upset as their weekend plans are disrupted by these launches.
A significant concern among many of us attending was the impact on the Indian River Lagoon. As you know, it’s already under a lot of stress from the Titusville side of the lagoon due to the excessive stormwater runoff and the dumping of raw sewage into the river. NASA and SpaceX have some great plans to mitigate their contribution to this pollution… let’s see how it plays out in the end! But right now their plans to mitigate the environmental side of things actually looks pretty good and they are definitely putting forth a commendable effort in an area where our own local authorities seem to just be trying to “kick the can down the road.”
More meetings are planned and as we find out about them I’ll try to post the upcoming meetings and presentations here on the website.
