Well ISP3 is a bit like the travels of Marco Polo. We know that strange, far away places exist, but cannot actually identify reality from hyperbole. Having said that, the periphery is nice for that reason because people can come up with all sorts of scenarios.
I think that Wastes are a great addition to players, especially those who like the Raven/Outworlds factions. Its easy to come up with scenarios like -
a) disgruntled Outworlders with Raven encroachment flee to one of the planets to create a powerbase to (hopefully) retake their Alliance back
b) generic pirate hunting, merc scenarios or prospecting
c) creation of mini states in the area
and so on.