Brazoria County Prairie the best birdwatching area in the country

By RICHARD STEWART

ANGLETON - For years, a group of local economic planners has dreamed of building a spaceport on the Brazoria County prairie. It would be, they said, a commercial gateway to the stars that would launch the county into the space age with plenty of high-tech jobs.

But now that the Gulf Coast Regional Spaceport Development Corporation is asking the Federal Aviation Administration for a license to actually operate a small liftoff facility, some residents say it's a bad idea to launch commercial rockets over the bird-rich coastal marshes and have them splash into the Gulf of Mexico.

"The exclusion zone for these launches is less than 400 yards from my home," Sterkx said, referring to an area that would be cleared of people during launches.

Others worry that rocket launches could harm the birds and other wildlife in the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, which adjoins the 5,000-acre site where the nonprofit corporation wants to build the spaceport.

"This area is a treasure," said Torry Tvedt, president of the Friends of the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge. The sanctuary and several other area refuges operated by federal, state and conservation groups attract hundreds of species of birds. "This is one of the best bird-watching areas in the country," he said.

...I have my concerns but I'll watch this space...

Chron.com | Spaceport raises concerns in Brazoria County

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