MAINE PUBLIC • February 28, 2022
Encouraging the development of a space industry in Maine would be bad for the state's environment and do little to help its economy, according to opponents of a bill that proposes a public-private partnership to assist nascent rocket companies. The measure, LD 1923, would offer technical assistance and attempt to put state government behind a bid to find a suitable rocket launching site. Opponents, including former Independent U.S. Senate Candidate Lisa Savage of Solon, say the bill, and the idea of Maine as a rocket launch site, are bad ideas. Savage says rocketry has proven to be harmful to the environment. The bill has also drawn a cool response from blu Shift Aerospace, a Brunswick-based company developing rockets that use a solid, bio-derived fuel. blu Shift Chief Executive Sascha Deri has said his company is already looking for a launch site on its own and would rather the state not duplicate his efforts.