Dear colleagues and international observers,
We are alerting environmental justice, disarmament, and transparency networks worldwide to a serious breach of democratic process now unfolding in Sandoval County, New Mexico.
Castelion Corporation, a defense startup founded by former SpaceX executives, has secured over $10 million in public subsidies and a fast-tracked Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) ordinance for “Project Ranger” — a hypersonic rocket-motor and detonation assembly facility planned for the outskirts of Rio Rancho, near Albuquerque.
The project was pushed through without a legally required public hearing, environmental review, or public access to safety documents. County officials approved it within 24 hours of a single, corporate-controlled “informational” session that withheld critical data on fire risk, chemical handling, and blast-zone reach.
On Oct 21 there was an informational meeting with presenters from Castilian Corporation
Key Facts:
- Scope: $119.8 million missile motor and detonation assembly plant, subsidized by $5 M from the state, $4 M from Sandoval County, and $1 M from Rio Rancho.
- Land & Infrastructure: County already grading roads, installing water tanks, and expanding Paseo del Volcan for the facility prior to the vote.
- Hazards: The facility will handle ammonium perchlorate, aluminum powder, and energetic materials—the same propellants implicated in multiple explosions at comparable U.S. sites.
- Fire-Safety Variance: The state and local fire departments approved a variance removing sprinklers and hydrants inside hazardous buildings because water can ignite hydrogen gas and dissolve perchlorate into groundwater.
- “One Spark Theory”: Even a single static-charge spark can trigger chain detonations where aluminum and oxidizers are stored. No third-party risk analysis or evacuation plan has been disclosed.
- Blast Zone: Castelion’s own map minimizes off-site danger by assuming flat terrain and calm winds. Local wildfire data show wind speeds of 25–40 mph, meaning any ignition could rapidly reach homes in Northern Meadows, Camino Crossing, and North Hills—all within two to three miles. LANL and Sandia national Labs Issues a report it is this report that holds the blast zone info. Our information request is being heavily redacted.
What the Community Faces:
Local Paper the Signpost Project Ranger article
Residents are being told the project is “safe” because it follows Department of Defense standards—yet the same standards forbid firefighters from approaching a burning building containing energetic materials.
If a detonation or wildfire occurs, first responders would be ordered to stand down and “let it burn.” The hydrogen and perchlorate runoff could enter the Rio Rancho aquifer, threatening the broader Albuquerque Basin, which supplies drinking water for nearly one million people.
Preliminary analysis shows 2.5 billion plus in losses if the wildfire spread across the West Mesa in High Winds. Since 2015 there are now 43 more days of wind events in the high wind corridor on the West Mesa. None of this was able to be put into the record because they denied us a public hearing.
What to Watch For:
Transport Routes: Rocket-motor components and ammonium perchlorate will move via Unser Boulevard and Paseo del Volcan— HWY 550, I 25 and I-40 corridors — dense commuter and school routes.
Code Variances: Officials have exempted Castelion from core fire-safety measures under the pretext of “national security.”
Expansion Creep: Similar facilities in Utah and Arkansas began as “assembly only” but later added live-fire testing and propellant synthesis.
Contamination: Perchlorate is a known endocrine disruptor that contaminates groundwater for decades; no monitoring wells or containment plan are public.
Why It Matters Globally:
This local decision fits a pattern of decentralized missile industrialization across the U.S.—using state LEDA/IRB bonds and private-equity financing to bypass national environmental and arms-control scrutiny.
By framing these factories as “economic development,” contractors are avoiding full NEPA and DOD oversight, shifting cost and risk to local taxpayers while accelerating a new arms race in hypersonic weapons.
Community Response:
Residents have filed politcal corruption and open-meetings complaints with the New Mexico DOJ and Governmental Accountability Office , citing conflicts of interest, premature expenditures, and intimidation of public participants by law-enforcement personnel during the October 22 vote.
We urge the global networks monitoring militarization, climate risk, and environmental law to track this case. It may become a national precedent for privatized weapons assembly inside residential counties without public consent.
Contact for updates & documentation: Common Ground Rising – Rio Rancho / Albuquerque Region www.commongroundrising.org
Give it a couple days to update website
What to Watch For:
Community Response:
Residents have filed politcal corruption and open-meetings complaints with the New Mexico DOJ and Governmental Accountability Office , citing conflicts of interest, premature expenditures, and intimidation of public participants by law-enforcement personnel during the October 22 vote.
We urge the global networks monitoring militarization, climate risk, and environmental law to track this case. It may become a national precedent for privatized weapons assembly inside residential counties without public consent.
Contact for updates & documentation: Common Ground Rising – Rio Rancho / Albuquerque Region www.commongroundrising.org
