Cumberland Island is Georgia’s southernmost barrier island and home to miles of undeveloped beaches, acres of pristine maritime forest, and miles-wide salt marsh landscapes. Although Cumberland Island is Camden County’s most popular tourist destination, in 2015, members of the Camden County Commission announced plans that would directly threaten the island and adjacent coastal resources.
For the past seven years, Camden officials have been pursuing a license from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that would allow them to launch rockets from a heavily contaminated 4,000+ acre site, just inland from Cumberland Island. According to the public documents, multiple launches would be conducted annually and each would produce noise, heat, air emissions, vibrations, shipping channel and fishing area closures—and would have a more than 20% probability of failure. The salt marsh, Cumberland River, Little Cumberland Island, and Cumberland Island National Seashore are the areas most at risk in the event of a launch failure.
VOTE YES on March 8th! That’s when Camden County voters will determine the fate of Spaceport Camden in a special referendum. Vote YES to STOP the Spaceport and protect our coast!
Not Worth the Risk
We can expect multiple launches per year—maybe even one per month. These will cause noise, light, air emissions that may include odor, vibration, and closures that will be noticed on Cumberland Island. Under a worse but predictable scenario, rocket launches at Spaceport Camden will fail. These failures usually occur within the first few minutes of the launch. Rocket failures that occur over Cumberland Island may cause falling debris, chemical spills, and fire. Due to the remote location of Cumberland Island, it is unlikely that pollution or a fire would be contained before causing catastrophic damage to property, wildlife, and habitat—some of which would be irreversible.
We’re working to stop this dangerous project.
One Hundred Miles has been working since 2015 to prevent Spaceport Camden from launching rockets over our coast. We have built a network of thousands of concerned citizens and partnered with dozens of partner organizations to ensure robust civic discourse informs local, state, and federal decision-making regarding the project. In 2018, OHM staff was appointed by County Commissioners to sit on the Spaceport Camden Environmental Subcommittee. This body worked for the better part of a year to prepare comments for the project’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement.
Over the years, as we have worked to understand the facts about how spaceports impact other U.S.communities and to seek specific information about Spaceport Camden has run into roadblocks in Camden County. In 2019, the Southern Environmental Law Center filed a lawsuit on our behalf against the county for withholding information about the spaceport. In 2020, we took over the grassroots effort to collect signatures on an official petition that was submitted to a judge on December 14, 2021. Because more than 10% of the registered voters in Camden County signed the petition, the judge set a date for a referendum that if passed, will repeal Camden County’s decision to purchase the site where Spaceport Camden will be located.
You can help.
To STOP the Spaceport, VOTE YES. Early voting for the Camden County referendum begins on February 26 (Sat) and goes through March 4. Election Day is Tuesday, March 8th.
“Shall the resolutions of the Board of Commissioners of Camden County, Georgia authorizing the Option Contract with Union Carbide Corporation and Camden County’s right and option to purchase the property described therein be repealed.” Camden County residents—please vote YES!
Want to help us get out the vote? Email us to get involved—we have a variety of volunteer opportunities involved and need all the help we can get!
Spaceport Camden in the News
The Washington Post | 2/10/22
The Brunswick News | 2/9/22
The Current | 2/8/22
The Current | 2/7/22
Brunswick News | 2/5/22
The Current | 12/21/21
WTOC | 12/7/21
Brunswick News | 11/2/21
Georgia Recorder | 11/1/21
American Birds Conservancy | 10/21/21
The Current | 10/2/21
The Verge | 9/22/21
The New York Times | 8/21/21
The Brunswick News | 8/17/21
U.S. News | 8/13/21
Georgia Recorder | 7/9/21
The Brunswick News | 6/25/21
Savannah Morning News | 3/30/21
SELC | 9/18/20
WJCT | 8/14/20
Savannah Morning News | 5/28/20
“Spaceport Camden is a boondoggle—one that will cost taxpayers millions of dollars and prevent safe, reliable access to recreational and commercial fisheries and Cumberland Island National Seashore. Join us in speaking out to stop this ill-conceived project.”
Contact Megan for more information about our efforts to protect our coast from Spaceport Camden.
