PLANS for a spaceport in Unst have inched forward again this week after licence applications were submitted to the industry regulator. Spaceport and range licence applications are now sitting with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). It comes after Shetland Islands Council.
IT REMAINS unclear when a decision will be made on planning applications for the proposed Shetland Space Centre in Unst. It comes after an agent for the project said the company would be “very disappointed” if the application for the launch site at Lamba Ness misses out on.
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THE PUBLIC body responsible for Scotlandâs natural heritage does not want to see launches take place from the proposed Shetland Space Centre between mid-May and the end of June every year due to the possible impact on breeding birds.
NatureScot said that without mitigating conditions it would object to the plans for a launch site at Lamba Ness in Unst as it âcould affect internationally important natural heritage interestsâ.
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It said that the development should not adversely affect the integrity of the site if no launches or static tests are carried out between mid-May and the end of June to avoid âdisturbing birds during the critical incubation and early brooding periodâ.
Scots nature agency s concerns for seabirds from space centre plan Scotland’s natural heritage agency has raised concerns for important seabird colonies from a proposed space centre in Shetland. NatureScot is to insist that managers of the proposed spaceport in Shetland does not carry out rocket launches during the breeding season fearing that without that protected populations on the island of Unst could disappear. The plan is for the space centre to be be used by Lockheed Martin s UK Pathfinder satellite launch system and it would enable up to 30 launches per year. It follows the UK Space Agency approving Lockheed Martin’s plan to use a £23.5m grant to move its UK Pathfinder Launch to the most northerly inhabited island in Scotland as part of the UK’s spaceflight programme.
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