SpaceX repeatedly polluted waters in Texas this year, regulators found

Elon Musk's SpaceX violated environmental regulations by repeatedly releasing pollutants into or near bodies of water in Texas, a state agency said in a notice of violation focused on the company's water deluge system at its Starbase launch facility.

The notice from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) last week came five months after the Environmental Protection Agency Region 6 office, which covers Texas and surrounding states, had also informed SpaceX that it violated the Clean Water Act with the same type of activity.

The notices and related investigative records, obtained by CNBC, have not been previously reported.

TCEQ said its agency's office in the South Texas city of Harlingen, near Starbase in Boca Chica, received a complaint on Aug. 6, 2023, alleging that SpaceX "was discharging deluge water without TCEQ authorization."

"In total, the Harlingen region received 14 complaints alleging environmental impacts from the Facility's deluge system," the regulator said in the document.

Aerospace companies, including SpaceX, generally need to be in compliance with state and federal laws to gain approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for future launches. SpaceX was seeking permission to conduct up to 25 annual launches and landings of its Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket at its Boca Chica facility. Notices of violation could delay those approvals and result in civil monetary penalties for SpaceX, further probes and criminal charges.

SpaceX didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

On July 25, 2024, an environmental investigator with TCEQ "conducted an in-house compliance record review" to determine SpaceX's compliance with wastewater regulations. The investigation found that SpaceX