CANBERRA, June 17 (Xinhua) -- A proposed rocket pad in South Australia (SA) has been approved for three launches despite environmental concerns.
The State Commission Assessment Panel (SCAP) has given Southern Launch permission to fire three rockets from the site at Whalers Way on SA's Eyre Peninsula before the end of 2021 under strict conditions.
The company will be required to complete an environmental management plan before the launches and remove all infrastructure from the site immediately afterwards.
Lloyd Damp, chief executive of Southern Launch, said the "small rocket launches" from a temporary pad would allow the company to collect data on noise and vibrations to support its proposal for a permanent launch pad at the site.
"What we're proposing is to launch rockets that are about 10 meters tall from the site - they are on the smaller scale of what we hopefully will be launching," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
"The test rockets won't be carrying any major payload ... but our hope is that, should the Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex be approved, we can then do launches to orbit - sending satellites into space."
Southern Launch announced plans to build the Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex with state government support in December 2018, but the project has been delayed.
In May environmentalists and traditional Indigenous owners of the land expressed concerns about the impact of the facility on endangered bird species in the area.
"It's a really special conservation area," Julia Peacock from the Nature Conservation Society of SA said at the time.
"We're concerned that we're building an industrial facility that involves explosions that are noisy and causes vibrations - that those species are going to be frightened."
In response, Damp said Southern Launch was committed to preserving biodiversity.
The company still requires launch approval from the Australian Space Agency (ASA) for the rockets, which will be launched south over the Great Australian Bight. Enditem