A bill was passed in the House of Assembly yesterday making effective two new departments to replace the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries following its dissolution earlier this year.

Government and opposition leaders debated the bill which has taken two and one half months to come before the House of Assembly since the break-up of the department on April 1.

The responsibilities and programmes that were formerly headed by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries now fall under either the Department of Conservation Services or the Department of Environmental Protection.

The Department of Conservation Services, which has a current account balance of $3.9 million and 44 members, will be responsible for promoting the conservation and sustainable use of Bermuda's natural resources, educating the public about environmental issues, and encouraging responsible and sustainable use of home gardens, farming, fishing and diving. The Bermuda Aquarium, Museum & Zoo will be at the core of the new department.

The Department of Environmental Protection currently has an account balance of $3.1 million and 28 staff members. Minister Dennis Lister said the department will offer direction and management in the formulation and implementation of environmental policy, review and introduce legislation to protect Bermuda's environment, enforce environmental standards and policies and conduct research.

Mr. Lister said that the restructuring would not diminish the importance given to the industries of agriculture and fisheries.

Instead, he expressed hope that Ministry which heads the departments, would be better able to address the range of issues facing Bermuda in the 21st century.

However, Shadow Minister of Legislative Affairs John Barritt called yesterday a "sad, sad" day for Bermuda questioning the message the proposed changes send to the Islands farmers and fishermen.

"They are not the industry they were in the past but we should not send a message we do not consider them important."

While he said he understood what the Government was trying to do, he did not feel that it was necessary to change the name of the department or its officials. And, he raised questions about the problem it could cause for the industries.

"Why do we want to do away with the words `Department of Agriculture and Fisheries?' We're putting another nail in the coffin.

"They are struggling as it is - farmers and fishermen in this country."

Mr. Barritt indicated that the small number of registered farmers and fishermen (84 and 75 respectively) should not make them less important to Bermuda.

"God forbid that we need to turn to those people to provide us with sustenance. They may be lifelines in the future."

Earlier Minister Lister claimed that the legislation was simple to which the Shadow Minister asked why it had taken from April 1 for the bill to be brought before the House of Assembly.

Mr. Barritt also criticised the Government's commitment to the environment. He said: "In order for environmental protection to be effective you need more reorganisation. You need more than words. You need action and enforcement."

Calling Government the "greatest offender" against the environment, he cited a number of noteworthy infractions against the environment the Government has not addressed such as the Airport dump, Asbestos, the use of pesticides and the soil at Ferry Reach.

He claimed that the soil recently placed on Ferry Reach near the boat channel was littered with pieces of plastic that could potentially contaminate the water.

"You have this right next to a major channel. Plastics are probably the number one enemy of marine life. I ask the Government, where is the commitment to the environment?"

He also questioned whether the issue of asbestos in Bermuda has been addressed adequately by Government.

In regards to the use of pesticides in Bermuda, he noted that whomever distributes it is seen with a mask on his face while other citizens are exposed to the chemicals.

He asked: "He is wearing a mask, but what about rest of us poor suckers that don't know he's coming?"

Government backbencher Dale Butler said the Minister of Environment has a near impossible task ahead of him because there is essentially very little environment left to protect in Bermuda.

Mr. Butler said the bill under debate to change the name of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to the Department of Environmental Protection was "all about political correctness".

"But really, when we look at the country, there is virtually nothing left for the Minister to protect," Mr. Butler said.

Bermuda's open space is being gobbled up by concrete and with the exception of small tracks of land like the Railway Trail and school grounds, he said.

"We snip and we snip," Mr. Butler said, adding sidewalks, widening roadways and building up walls while the natural environment continues to shrink.

The backbencher also referred to the growing number of people who completely disregard Planning regulations.

"A recent report saw 500 violations of Planning laws last year," he said.

And these tensions will continue to increase as more and more businesses move to the Island and build more and more buildings, he added.

"Bermudians are asking themselves, `do we build up' and even thinking about reclaiming land," Mr. Butler said.

He added: "I really want to know what (Minister Lister) is going to be protecting."

Mr. Butler also highlighted the declining fisheries industry, saying not as many local fish are being caught and consumed and there are fewer and fewer fishermen each year.

Opposition MP Allan Marshall questioned why Government was presenting a bill concerned only with "housekeeping" for the Environment Ministry when there are many pressing environmental issues.

"It speaks to this Government's lack of commitment and sincerity toward the issues facing our environment, that they rotate Ministers virtually every year," Mr. Marshall said.

He listed a number of areas where the Opposition feels Government could be doing a better job, noting that traffic has increased on the Railway Trails, the issue of feral animals remains vexing, Bermuda's dog problems continue and there are several threats to reef health.

Mr. Marshall used a number of newspaper articles written since the PLP came to power in 1998 to illustrate his arguments of ongoing challenges the Environment Ministry should be addressing.

On the subject of pollution, he said pesticides are threatening the health of local amphibians - and possibly humans - yet a pesticide report Government paid $60,000 in 2000 has yet to see "the light of day".

Mr. Marshall also noted that cancer rates on the increase in local pets, helium balloons continue to threaten marine life and problems continue with the Airport dump.

Opposition MP Erwin Adderley added that many of the issues which the people of Bermuda consider to be environmental - parks, beaches, Planning - actually will fall outside the purview of the new Environmental Protection department.

Wrapping up debate on the bill, Mr. Lister said his Ministry has already taken much action on many of the areas which UBP MPs highlighted.

For example, the most recent report of the Dog Committee found that the number of attacks fell over the past year and Government is working with local suppliers to encourage a voluntary ban on helium balloons, he said.

Parliament also passed a small bill Friday which changes the title of the Land Valuation Officer to Land Valuation Director.

Mr. Lister said the change sought only to bring the title in line with other department heads within the Ministry.