As opposition mounts, Texas delays vote on proposed swap to give state parkland to SpaceX

Facing criticism from conservation groups, Texas delayed a vote to authorize a land swap that would give a chunk of a beachfront state park to SpaceX.

The proposal would give SpaceX 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park in exchange for 477 acres near the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. Texas Parks and Wildlife staff has said the swap would boost the state’s conservation efforts and provide additional recreational opportunities, such as hiking and wildlife viewing.

Parks commissioners were set to vote on the plan Thursday, but the item was pulled from the agenda following opposition from some residents and environmental groups. Those groups, which include the Sierra Club and Save RGV, urged commissioners to delay the vote to allow the public more time to examine the plan.

State commissioners will revisit the issue at a meeting in late March.

“This is an important decision involving state lands, and the public deserves the right to know and provide input before a decision is rushed through on behalf of a private developer like SpaceX,” Cyrus Reed, conservation director for the Sierra Club’s Lone Star Chapter, said in a statement.

Led by billionaire Elon Musk, the space exploration company is quickly transforming the Rio Grande Valley with its Starbase facility, rocket launches and plans to build a new multimillion-dollar shopping center and restaurant in Brownsville.

But environmental groups and some residents have complained about noise, light pollution and construction. Last year, environmental groups sued the Federal Aviation Administration, challenging its approval of SpaceX’s expanded rocket-launch operations.

The lawsuit came after SpaceX’s Starship exploded over South Texas shortly after a launch in April, sparking a fire and hurling chunks of concrete and metal shrapnel thousands of feet into the air. At the time, Musk addressed criticism from environmental groups, saying the debris amounted to “a human-made sandstorm” and was not toxic.

Starship exploded over South Texas again in November but spread significantly less debris than the first explosion, according to reports.

Conservationists have expressed particular concern for the potential loss of wildlife and habitat, as the launch site is within miles of the state park and Laguna Atascosa, which is a coastal home to wintering and migratory birds and is considered a premier bird-watching destination.

Cameron County property records show the 477 acres near the refuge are owned by Bahia Grande Holdings, an Austin-registered business. It is not clear how SpaceX and the property owner are connected. SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment.

Until recently, Texas has leased Boca Chica State Park to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which oversaw management of the 1,060 acres of dunes, flats, marshes and coastal grasslands. The state acquired the park, three miles north of the mouth of the Rio Grande, in 1994.