US President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Wednesday, asserting that it would reduce the regulations overseeing commercial rocket launches.
The directive requires the U.S. transportation secretary to remove or accelerate environmental assessments for launch permits issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The executive order states, 'Inefficient permitting procedures deter investment and creativity, hindering the capacity of American businesses to excel in international space markets.'
It also advocates for the elimination of "outdated, unnecessary, or excessively limiting regulations for launch and reentry vehicles," as stated in a release from the White House.
Could the action be advantageous to Elon Musk?
Trump's most recent executive order also mentions that "inefficient" approval procedures "discourage investment and innovation," which hinders American companies' capacity to remain competitive in international space markets.
The action might advantage private space companies like SpaceX, the firm led by former Trump advisor Elon Musk, even though the twofalling out publicly in recent months.
The corporation — which holds a leading position in the worldwide private space launch industry — is preparing trips to the Moon and Mars with its Starship vehicles, which have experienced multiple challenges.finally, in June, during a routine test, it resulted in an explosion.
Environmental organizations criticize the executive order
Environmental organizations have expressed disapproval of Trump's efforts to reduce regulations on commercial space travel.
"This careless directive endangers both humans and wildlife due to private companies launching massive rockets that frequently malfunction and cause destruction in nearby regions," said Jared Margolis from the U.S.-based non-profit Center for Biological Diversity in a statement.
The Federal Aviation Administration gave approval for SpaceX to boost the number of Starship launches per year, from five to 25, in early May, stating that this change would not have a harmful impact on the environment.
SpaceX boss Musk, the world's richest man, has repeatedly expressed concerns that research on the environmental effects of Starship is delaying the rocket's testing, along with post-flight incident analyses and FAA licensing evaluations.
Edited by: Zac Crellin
Writer: Felix Tamsut (with AFP, Reuters)