Spaceport decision delayed until September
Jul. 27—The wait for the long-awaited final Record of Decision for a proposed spaceport in Camden County just got longer.
The Federal Aviation Administration announced Monday that the final Record of Decision, which was originally planned this month, has been delayed until sometime in September.
The decision to delay the decision was due to "ongoing consultation efforts," according to FAA officials.
"A notice will be sent to individuals and organizations about the project distribution list when the Record of Decision is released.
The Final EIS addressed the county's proposed launch site operations based on a conceptual launch vehicle. The FAA will perform additional NEPA analyses for any future launch vehicle operators seeking to operate from Spaceport Camden. This additional analysis would address the potential impacts of the launch of their specific vehicles.
Steve Weinkle, a longtime critic of the proposed spaceport, expressed concerns about the 39-month wait since the public comment period was closed. He said the National Park Service is "holding firm with significant unanswered questions."
"Spaceport Camden is the wrong place to try to launch rockets," said Weinkle, who lives less than 10 miles from the proposed launch site. He said there are too many potential complications "eventually leading to constraints making it non-competitive," even if the FAA eventually has a rocket it can launch from the site.
"The Launch Site Operator License and Final EIS use a fictional rocket on a trajectory not used by commercial launches because it is inefficient," he said. "The planned 'lofted" trajectory is used by ballistic missile that never achieve orbit."
Weinkle speculated the reason for the delay could be the FAA realizes the spaceport analysis must also include the adjacent Bayer property since it's part of the launch hazard zone.
Weinkle said the county, which has already spent $10 million to establish a spaceport, will have to spend millions more to find a private partner if the FAA grants an operator's license.
"One supposed benefit to Spaceport Camden was not scheduling around NASA and the Air Force at Kennedy/Canaveral and Wallops," he said. "But those launches were known months and weeks in advance. Spaceport Camden will play second fiddle to even more submarine movements and training announced on very short notice because of national security issues. Many problems must be solved."
John Simpson, a spaceport spokesman for Camden County, said the delay was not unexpected.
"Camden County has been working with the FAA on the Spaceport Camden EIS since late 2015," he said. "Of course we are anxious for this process to be complete, but taking a few additional weeks to ensure FEIS is correct is worth the wait."
Simpson said county officials are encouraged by the recommendation to grant Camden County an operator's license.
"After the issuance of the Record of Decision and license we will begin working with the dozen-plus companies that have expressed interest in Spaceport Camden to bring jobs and industry to Camden in order to maximize the Record of Decision for taxpayers."
