00:00Should the federal government be able to just give protected public land to companies like
00:04SpaceX?
00:05Indigenous groups and environmentalists have filed an emergency injunction fighting a decision
00:10by the U.S. government to give hundreds of acres of protected public land in a wildlife
00:14refuge to SpaceX.
00:16In this deal, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service gave SpaceX 727 acres of public land that's
00:23part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Texas.
00:27In exchange, SpaceX agreed to swap 683 acres of land that it owns near its Starbase launch
00:33hub.
00:34In response, a coalition made of conservation and indigenous tribal groups sued the U.S.
00:39Fish and Wildlife Service over the decision, which they say violates a number of laws, including
00:44the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act and some of the land as part of a historic
00:49landmark.
00:50So this land swap would also violate the National Historic Preservation Act.
00:54Now, the coalition has filed an emergency injunction asking a federal judge to put a stop to the
01:00land exchange until courts can rule on the case.
01:03Now, the land that SpaceX wants to swap is near its Starbase launch hub, and the launches
01:08from Starbase already cause harm to local wildlife, according to the Center for Biological Diversity.
01:13And in addition to the harm and potential risks of future harm to wildlife, these groups are
01:18also concerned over what precedent this swap may set, that federal officials could simply
01:22give protected public land to a corporation.
01:26We will continue to follow as the courts weigh in on this decision, and as always, you can follow
01:31along at space.com.
Comments