It is hard to disagree with former Environment Minister Arthur Hodgson when he says that Bermuda did not get much of a deal from the United States for the former bases.

Without going into detail once again, the US left a good deal of environmental damage behind them when they left the Island. Cost estimates vary, but the only solid figure available is $60 million. Instead, Bermuda received $11 million, which the US said was for the replacement of Longbird Bridge. As for the rest, it's up to Bermuda. Works Minister Alex Scott has stated that the bill could be considerably lower. But he also said that the UK, which negotiated the final agreement on Bermuda's behalf, might pay for some of the clean-up. Mr. Hodgson thinks so too, and notes that Britain signed the original agreement with the US.

But Britain again rejected that notion on Friday when Foreign Office junior minister Baroness Amos rejected the idea out of hand, just as Government House has already made clear. It is likely that Mr. Scott knew this very well when he made the announcement. After all, Bermuda would surely have never agreed to the handover without having ascertained who was going to pay. If there was a moral case to be made, it should have been made before Bermuda agreed to the handover. Of course, this may be an attempt by Government to demonstrate how perfidious the British can be; if that's the case, it may turn out to be a very expensive demonstration (for Bermuda, not Britain).

Nonetheless, the British, and by extension, Bermuda, have stated that this was the best deal the Island was going to get. Now we have to live with it and hope that a developer will be sufficiently brave, or foolish, to take on the remediation of the former US Naval Annex themselves. There is another alternative. Bermuda could take on the clean-up itself and use the bulk of the property as park land. The Island has very little open space left and free space is essential to allow people to breathe and relax away from the hustle and bustle of their regular lives. The former Annex has plenty of open land, and if the peninsula were used for a marina and as a water access for the public, this would add immeasurably to the quality of life of West End residents.

There will be an expense in remediating the property, just as there has been at the Pembroke Dump, where the community is paying for the cost of decades of environmental irresponsibility. But the end result in Pembroke will be a park for the public to enjoy just minutes away from city streets. The same could be true in Southampton. When he was Environment Minister, Mr. Hodgson seemed to be sympathetic to the environmental needs of the community. If he thinks the US has not paid, then this could be a way to get some assistance, particularly given the strong emphasis that the UK Government has put on the environment in its Partnership for Progress with the overseas territories.

It is also possible that Bermuda could get assistance from international organisations ranging from the United Nations to the World Wildlife Fund to assist with this worthy cause. To be sure,some of the money will have to come from Bermudians' pockets. It would be a worthy payment to future generations.