Coastal Commission rejects proposal for more SpaceX launches from Vandenberg
VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. – The California Coastal Commission voted six to four to deny a request to increase SpaceX rocket launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base Thursday.
The denial of Vandenberg Space Force Base's federal consistency determination, a state-level decision concerning federal actions that impact local coastal zones, was made because the partner for the majority of rocket launches from the Space Force Base is a private company, SpaceX.
According to the California Coastal Commission, "The decision to deny an increase in rocket launches at Vandenberg Space Force Base was motivated by several factors. However, the primary concern articulated by the Commissioners at Thursday's public hearing was that SpaceX, as a private company, should itself be applying for a coastal development permit under California state law."
While federal agencies, such as the U.S. Space Force, can avoid the usual permitting process through the California Coastal Commission as long as they agree to a mitigation agreement, private companies are subject to the California Coastal Act that requires permitting or permission from the Commission which regulates the coastal zone statewide.
"This company [SpaceX] is owned by the richest person in the world [Elon Musk] with direct control of what could be the most expansive communications system in the planet," said California Coastal Commissioner Mike Wilson. "Just last week that person was talking about political retribution."
Elon Musk joined Presidential candidate Donald Trump on the campaign trail earlier this month.
"Elon Musk is hopping about the country, spewing and tweeting political falsehoods and attacking FEMA [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] while claiming his desire to help hurricane victims with free Starlink access to the internet," stated California Coastal Commissioner Gretchen Newsom.
The image below, courtesy of the California Coastal Commission, shows the inland extent of the Coastal Zone in Santa Barbara County as the blue line.
The Coastal Commission noted that Space Force officials agreed to additional conditions including increased environmental monitoring proposed this summer as part of the federal agency's attempt to increase launches to 36 a year.
SpaceX is one of two U.S.-based launch service providers currently certified to launch national security missions through the National Security Space Launch program.
