From the ongoing public hearing on Starship/Super Heavy launches from Boca Chica. 
The presentation was otherwise a recap of the draft environmental assessment released last month. Now a Spanish version of the same presentation before going on to public comment.
Now time for public comments. More than 100 people have signed up; each gets up to 3 minutes. Could be a while.
Comments so far have all been in favor of SpaceX launching Starship/Super Heavy from Boca Chica. “Let him go as fast as he can,” one person says of Musk.
First critical commenter says FAA violated Title VI of Civil Rights Act by not providing Spanish language materials in advance. Also says SpaceX is “very destructive” of the community.
“My house shakes with the little rockets,” says one person who lives in nearly Port Isabel, referring to Starship suborbital flights. Fears widespread property damage from Starship/Super Heavy launches. Like a couple others, asks the FAA to do a full EIS.
One commenter says the draft assessment says nothing about proposed 250 MW power plant and LNG production. Calls the lack of info an “egregious misstep.”
The FAA is “doing Boeing’s bidding” by raising these environmental issues, claims a commenter who says he worked as an engineer for the Indian space program. Suggests SpaceX move to another country (good luck, responds ITAR.)
Getting a higher rate of no-shows among people who signed up to speak as the evening progresses. Competing with ALCS Game 3 and Monday Night Football at this point.
As one commenter notes, “if our adversaries choose to nuke us, we can forget about the wildlife.”
“This project is not about the rockets,” says another commenter. “This is a large oil and gas operation.”
He’s followed by a person who says Elon Musk “will spare no expense” to protect the wildlife. “He’ll make people whole if their property is damaged.”
One commenter cheerfully reminds us there is a 100% of an asteroid impact wiping out humanity, someday.
Another suggests that one to two commenters that oppose the project “stood out to me as having ulterior motives,” nothing there are competitors that would do anything possible to delay SpaceX.
One commenter says she’ll speak for the full three minutes even though she has nothing more to say; alas, a poor connection meant we heard very little of what she said anyway.
One local resident says she is “absolutely disgusted by the audacity of all these SpaceX supporters” offering similar comments. “I am disgusted and I am angry!”
She’s followed by someone who says Texas is the perfect place for this project, and people who don’t want to live near it should move.
Last public comment is from Jessica Tretreau, a Brownsville city commissioner, who says SpaceX has turned around the fortunes of the city. “I beg you” to give SpaceX a license, she says.
That ends the hearing. Part 2 on Wednesday.
That ends the hearing. Part 2 on Wednesday.
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