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Days before Blue Origin’s much-anticipated rocket launch, the company was fined for a previous unauthorized New Glenn test.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) has fined Blue Origin $3,000 (up to $3,250 in surcharges) for unauthorized use of the deluge system during the static fire test of the New Glenn rocket reports.
In September 2024, Blue Origin conducted a refueling test of its upcoming rocket at Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Hot fire test he continued for 15 seconds, and its purpose was to “test the interaction between the subsystems of the second stage, its two BE-3U engines and ground control systems,” Blue Origin said in a statement at the time. However, the FDEP had not yet granted Blue Origin the required permit to use the launch pad’s water flooding system, but the company went ahead and used it anyway, resulting in a fine.
“Although Blue Origin applied for a permit for the LC-36 deluge system on May 31, 2024, no permit has been issued to date and the system may not be operational,” FDEP wrote in the letter. “This static fire constitutes an intentional unauthorized discharge of untreated industrial wastewater into the environment.”
It’s Blue Origin’s heavy duty truck It will be available no later than Friday, January 10 ET in the three-hour launch window that opens at 1 p.m. For its first flight, New Glenn will carry Blue Origin Blue Ring Pathfinder, and its debut will also double as the rocket’s first certification flight, paving the way for it to carry national security payloads on future missions.
The rocket has been in development for nearly a decade, but the latest tests last year paved the way for its first flight. The new Glenn was originally scheduled to debut in 2020, but delays in the development of its seven BE-4 engines (made by Blue Origin) pushed its first flight back several years.
Standing nearly 320 feet (98 meters) tall, New Glenn is capable of lifting 45 tons into low Earth orbit and 13 tons into geostationary orbit. The rocket has a reusable first stage designed for 25 missions.
Like Blue Origin, industry rival SpaceX broke the rules with its launch pad flooding system. In 2023, SpaceX tested a water deluge system without applying for environmental permits need to do. The company was fined for dumping waste water around the launch pad without permission, but this has had little effect on SpaceX. The fines were just a slap on the wrist – hardly a deterrent for a company owned by the world’s richest man. CNBC in August 2024 informed SpaceX has allegedly violated environmental regulations by releasing industrial water through a water deluge system at its Starbase facility in Texas.
With New Glenn’s upcoming debut, Blue Origin could have a chance to compete with industry giant SpaceX, fueling a feud between two rocket billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, both of whom are known for their flouting of rules. Under Donald Trump’s presidency, with Musk at his side, such regulations could be even more effective as the space industry seeks to ramp up its activities without restrictions.
