ISTANBUL

The head of a Norwegian environmental organization says the aftermath of a German rocket crash at Norway’s northern Andoya Spaceport lacked transparency and left many questions unanswered.

The Spectrum rocket, developed by German company Isar Aerospace, crashed just seconds after liftoff from the Andoya Spaceport on March 30, drawing backlash from local fishermen and politicians. Despite this, the company described the mission as a “success,” claiming the situation was under control.

But Ruben Oddekalv, head of the Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature (NMF), disagrees — arguing that key details have been withheld and that calling the launch a success is misleading.

🗣️ 'We very seldom see real transparency … There are always things that are hidden. There is always information that is not shown'

🗣️ 'The explosion itself creates a lot of gases and spreads a lot of chemicals and environmental poison to the air, and they will cover the ground… pic.twitter.com/8Ho4rI7LLq

— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) April 10, 2025

“We very seldom see real transparency … There are always things that are hidden. There is always information that is not shown,” Oddekalv told Anadolu, stressing that companies often downplay the real consequences of such incidents.

“So yes, we had a little spill of debris. We had a little spill of lubricants and stuff. But it’s not that bad. But in reality, very often we see that the reality is worse than what is painted to the picture,” he added.

Rocket pollution threatens ocean, air

Oddekalv voiced alarm over both the immediate and long-term environmental impact of the crash — particularly the chemicals released into the air during the explosion and the debris that scattered into the nearby ocean.

“There is a lot of stuff you don’t want in nature. The explosion itself creates a lot of gases and spreads a lot of chemicals and environmental poison to the air, and they will cover the ground around the ocean and the atmosphere,” he said, warning that airborne pollutants eventually return to Earth, harming people and ecosystems.

Oddekalv isn’t alone in his concerns. Patrick Schroder, senior research fellow in the Environment and Society Programme at Chatham House, also highlighted the dangers of rocket emissions — especially at high altitudes.

“They inject black carbon, basically soot, nitrous oxides and other pollutants in the stratosphere,” he said. “This has broader impacts on the climate and ozone,” referring to the atmospheric layer that shields Earth from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays.

Oddekalv was particularly “anxious” over a report that estimating that roughly 30% of lubricant-contaminated crash debris remains in the ocean after the crash. He warned this poses a threat to fisheries, as the chemicals could accumulate in seafood over time.

“Local fishermen and their livelihoods in the area, there’s probably going to be an impact, because the quality of seafood probably deteriorates over time. So, that’s the trade-off between having a space port in that area versus local communities who might not directly benefit from this,” Schroder added.

Fragile Arctic ecosystem at greater risk

Oddekalv emphasized that the Andoya Spaceport’s location in the Arctic makes the environmental consequences of such incidents even more severe.

“It’s a very vulnerable area because it’s so high north, so everything is more vulnerable to pollution,” he explained.

Schroder echoed this, pointing out that the Arctic ecosystem is especially slow to recover from environmental disruption. “Any kind of impact takes longer time for ecosystems to recover,” he said, underlining that climate change has particular impacts on Arctic regions as warming is a lot faster than other places.

Even successful launches bring pollution

Oddekalv warned that upcoming operations by the space company — even if they avoid crashes — could still harm the environment due to the combustion of large volumes of jet fuel.

“You have the big burning of jet fuel in one location, which is problematic in itself, because it creates a lot of steam, a lot of burn-offs, which goes into the ocean and into the atmosphere,” he said.

Schroder also flagged the long-term problem of space junk, noting that debris from rocket launches eventually re-enters Earth’s atmosphere and burns up — releasing pollutants and further degrading the ozone layer.

Given these persistent risks, both experts underscored the importance of closely monitoring spaceport operations.

“We need to take a closer look in the longer run to see if it changes the environment because there are a lot of sensitive fisheries, there is a lot of sensitive bird activity in the area, and it needs to be monitored to see if it’s creating any damage or changes,” Oddekalv said. “And if it’s so, they need to stop it, which very seldom happens because there’s a lot of money involved.”

Regulatory gaps leave environment exposed

Schroder emphasized that current environmental and space-related regulations are insufficient to address the growing risks posed by the commercial space sector.

“It’s an area which is quite under-regulated,” he said, pointing to a “real gap” in both environmental and space law.

He noted that while some monitoring efforts are underway, they are often limited in scope or still in the early stages. “There’s currently the Montreal Protocol. That is the UN-level treaty to phase out ozone depleting substances. It covers various industries … but it doesn’t cover rocket launchers,” he said.

Schroder also cited the European Space Agency’s “Zero Debris Charter,” which has attracted around 100 signatories — including private companies and governments — who have pledged to take action on space debris.

“That’s not necessarily a law or regulation. It’s basically actors committing to something. There’s no penalty if they don’t, but they’re making a commitment that they want to do a better job. So, you can mitigate some of these problems,” he said.

Efforts are also underway to develop a circular space economy, which would promote the reuse of decommissioned satellites and reduce the frequency of rocket launches.

Schroder pointed to other legal gaps, such as the outdated nature of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which was designed primarily for state actors. He argued that it should be updated to cover today’s commercial and private space enterprises.

“There are policies around extended producer responsibility. So, the companies who are putting certain types of products on the market, they’re then also responsible financially to deal with the end-of-life issues,” Schroder added, suggesting that such policies could also be applied to waste management in the space industry.