EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin met with representatives of billionaire Elon Musk’s company SpaceX late last month, according to the agency’s online calendar.
The Feb. 27 meeting in Washington occurred as Musk, the world’s richest man, is already exerting extraordinary influence on the Trump administration. The SpaceX and Tesla founder has led an unprecedented effort to slash federal spending and personnel through his role leading the so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
Other than Zeldin, those at the meeting were Matt Dunn, Owen McDonough and Tim Hughes, said EPA spokesperson Daniel Gall. All three individuals have worked in government affairs for SpaceX, according to their LinkedIn profiles and news reports.
“This was an introductory meeting,” Gall said in an email.
SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment.
Based in southern Texas, SpaceX has run up against environmental and public safety complaints tied to its rocket launches. Last week, SpaceX’s Starship — the most powerful rocket ever developed — broke apart midair, prompting the Federal Aviation Administration to briefly halt commercial flights to avoid collisions with debris.
Under the Biden administration, EPA fined SpaceX $148,000 for allegedly polluting sensitive wetlands bordering the Boca Chica launch site in multiple incidents from 2022 to 2024.. According to an agreement with EPA — finalized days before former President Joe Biden left office — the company discharged “industrial process wastewater” and liquid oxygen into wetlands that border the Rio Grande.
The company is seeking approval from the FAA to quintuple the number of launches permitted at the site, from five to 25 per year. The facility abuts the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, an important habitat for threatened species like piping plovers and sea turtles.
In a draft environmental assessment released last year, the FAA concluded that SpaceX could conduct mitigation measures to avoid “significant” environmental impacts as a result of more launches. A final assessment is expected soon.
Musk’s DOGE, meanwhile, appears to have a major presence at EPA. Agency staff must now obtain approval from DOGE before spending more than $50,000 on government transactions. Last month, three DOGE aides — including a SpaceX employee — were granted “read-only access” to EPA’s contracting system for agency spending.
As the FAA considers SpaceX’s request to ramp up rocket launches, a lawsuit over the initial approval of the launch program is making its way through the courts. Filed by the Center for Biological Diversity and other nonprofits, the suit alleges that the FAA did not conduct a proper analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act before signing off on the program.
Jared Margolis, a senior attorney at the CBD, speculated that SpaceX might have met with EPA to discuss its plans to turn its Texas launch site into a full-blown city.
“They want to build more housing, and I know there are some issues with construction runoff into the wetlands,” Margolis said. “My guess is that’s what they’re discussing.”
