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BASTROP — Elon Musk’s environmental impact in Bastrop County is subject to improvement with a new tri-party agreement between the city and its wastewater utility system.
Musk’s tunnel drilling Boring Company and interstellar Space Exploration Technologies Corp. have been drawing negative attention from city leaders and residents for their dumping of treated wastewater into the Colorado River, incurring violations from the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality.
“We love development here, we want businesses, they’re bringing fantastic jobs to this community, but you need to be a good neighbor and you need to take care of the environment and the community,” Juda Ross said during the March 26 council meeting.
A compromise was struck this month with Corix Utilities Inc. to construct a sewage line along Farm to Market 969 that will connect SpaceX with the city’s new $33 million wastewater treatment plant, according to City Manager Sylvia Carrillo.
Portions of the utility project will be funded from all involved parties with an estimated completion within two years, added Carrillo.
While Bastrop’s plant also deposits into the Colorado River, its extensive treatment technology is expected to keep the waterway in a much healthier state.
This advancement comes after SpaceX filed a permit in December to build its own wastewater treatment facility on site, which is still going through the approval process.
The SpaceX and Boring Company grounds show no signs of slowing down with more expansion and communal additions on the horizon.
