The FAA assesses its major federal actions such as issuing a launch license under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). You may have heard of Environmental Impact Statements. NEPA requires agencies to prepare them for major federal actions like issuing a license.
NEPA requires the FAA to include in every recommendation or report on a license “significantly affecting the quality of the human environment,” a detailed statement on the environmental impact of the proposed action, any adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided under the proposal, alternatives to the proposed action, the relationship between local short-term uses of man’s environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity, and any irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources which would be involved in the proposed action. 42 USC 4332(C).
My question is whether the human environment includes outer space?
Generally, when interpreting a law, the presence of a limiting adjective such as “human” means that there is some non-human environment to which NEPA does not apply. Might outer space be that non-human environment? There’s got to be a non-human environment somewhere for it to be necessary to characterize the environment subject to NEPA as human, and, so far, it’s not on Earth.
I’d argue that this side of L1 is a human environment because orbital debris can impact our property such as communications satellites and hit us on the head falling. Outside our gravity well things might impact our environment by being directed towards Earth. Altering the trajectory of an asteroid for example. Outside the Solar System seems safe at this point until there are humans actually present.
So you’d define “human” environment using two criteria. 1. If something affects us. and 2. If we’re present in it.