UK Science Minister Geroge Freeman launched the government’s new “Plan for Space Sustainability” at the fourth Summit for Space Sustainability in London this morning. The plan includes several measures which are designed to demonstrate the country’s commitment to the “sustainable use of space.”
The most significant of the measures is an effort to establish a new “Space Sustainability Standard” which aims to incentivize companies to take steps to mitigate their impact on Earth’s orbit. The government and the country’s spaceflight regulator will work with industry, insurers, and academia to develop and test the standard.
“To harness space for sustainability, we need an agreed framework of standards for measuring and managing debris, improving satellite repair and retrieval, and kite-marking genuinely sustainable supply chains,” said Freeman.
Companies that are awarded the sustainability Kitemark (a UK product and service quality trade mark which is operated by the British Standards Institution) will benefit from lower launch licence and insurance costs for satellite and space missions.
In addition to the new standard, the UK has also committed to further investment to support Phase 3 of the UN Office for Outer Space Activities (UNOOSA) Guidelines for the Long-Term Sustainability of Outer Space. The guidelines seek to set out how countries and companies can assist with preserving the outer space environment for future generations. This latest phase of the project will build on the previous two by raising awareness of the guidelines and identifying barriers that may impede their adoption.
The final pair of measures announced by Freeman both relate to the reduction and management of space debris. The first allocates an additional £5m in funding for the continued development of the UK’s Active Debris Removal (ADR) programme. The funding will enable the selection of two consortia projects for grant awards this summer.
Along with funding for the ADR programme, Freeman also revealed that the National Space Surveillance and Tracking Programme is in the process of launching a new “monitor your satellites” collision assessment service. Registrations for the service will open for all UK licensed satellite operators following a successful trial phase.
