Fears that imported soil for cricket wickets could lead to “environmental suicide” have been overblown, according to the Minster of Environment.

Minister Neletha Butterfield said she had no intention of heeding the Opposition’s call for her resignation and added that the naysayers were giving her Ministry very little credit.

On Friday it was announced at the House of Assembly that foreign soil could be imported for use on the National Sports Centre cricket pitch.

Since then environmentalists and UBP politicians have bemoaned the decision and said it could lead to foreign pests destroying crops across the Island. They have also argued that the introduction of chemicals to combat diseases found in the soil could upset the balance of Bermuda’s ecology.

But yesterday Ms Butterfield — who is currently abroad at a Caricom conference — said there would be many checks and balances to ensure that such dire predictions did not come true.

She said: “To me, this entire issue is about managing risk, something many in Bermuda should understand. We in the Ministry of the Environment, Telecommunications and E-Commerce are doing and will do everything in our power to manage the risk and keep it to an absolute minimum.

“Something Bermuda residents perhaps fail to understand is that the people employed in the various Departments responsible for safeguarding Bermuda’s environment are passionate about what they do. They don’t want to see the environment impacted in a negative way at all.

“The new regulations call for specific treatment and extensive testing at many stages in the import process, and only when any imported soil has been fully cleared will it be allowed to enter the island.

“ Highly qualified scientists will monitor the process from beginning to end to ensure risks are managed every step of the way.”

She added that there appeared to be misinformation regarding the situation and pointed out that large amounts of plants, fruits, vegetables and potting medium were already imported to the Island daily. These items also pose a risk to the environment but that the Ministry’s thorough inspections helped reduce the risk, she said.

She added: “Christmas trees are imported every year and are sometimes sent back following inspections which reveal pests. The Island’s nurseries, farmers and even private individuals import thousands of live plants and animals every year but vigorous inspections ensure that, to date, we have managed to keep foreign pests from destroying Bermuda’s fragile ecosystem.”

The Minister also said it was wrong to compare this decision to the situation in the 1940s, when a foreign pest imported on Juniper trees killed local Cedars, because unlike today there were little regulations in place 60 years ago.

Moreover, she believed that while many people were concentrating on the possible environmental costs they had failed to address the social costs associated with the issue.

She said: “We must look at the cost of not importing soil, for example, for use in the wicket of the cricket pitch of the Bermuda National Stadium. It is vital that the cricket pitch be certified by the International Cricket Board for use in officially sanctioned international cricket matches.

“This will contribute to Bermuda’s economic and social environment in many ways, including valuable experience for our national cricket team and increased tourism to watch cricket matches.

“Indeed, at the recent Cricket World Cup, of the 16 competing countries, Bermuda was the only one without an accredited home ground.”

It is anticipated that regulatory changes will improve the sub-standard pitch at the National Sports Centre to a level where international games can be hosted once more. In today’s Sports Section International Cricket Council’s pitch consultant, Andy Atkinson, backs the Minster’s decision.