The first phase of the $7 million Cooper's Island eco-resort will be open to the public on May 21 with Environment Minister Elvin James announcing yesterday it boasted some of the best beaches in Bermuda.

He said Cooper's Island will strive to become a world class eco-destination where locals and international visitors can enjoy Bermuda's natural environment.

He told the House of Assembly yesterday: "It will be a destination, of which Bermuda has far too few, where all our visitors can come and lose themselves in nature. This will not be a quick 20-minute walk, but a full day excursion.

"The public will be invited to enjoy some of the best beaches in Bermuda and explore wilderness they have probably never seen before."

Cooper's Island, which is next to the popular Clearwater Beach Park, includes the existing Cooper's Island Nature Reserve and the former NASA station.

However he revealed that although the NASA section was gated off it has been hit by vandals regularly breaching the security which had led to the destruction of important bird nesting sites and the illegal collection of West Indian top shells.

Cooper's Island, comprising 44.5 acres, is one of the largest tracts of relatively undeveloped land remaining in Bermuda said Mr, James who added it was needed as a green lung in an increasingly congested island.

It's next to the "cahow islands" and the Nonsuch Island Living Museum project and will have similar projects restoring and protecting Bermuda's native and endemic plant and animal life.

However Cooper's Island is easily accessible by road, making it an attractive destination for school children, visitors and residents.

"There is a great opportunity to provide Bermuda's schools with a purpose-built environmental field centre. The site and the field will be used to teach primary, middle and senior level science and social studies programmes.

"In addition, there is a unique opportunity to develop a Museum and Visitors Centre at Cooper's Island which celebrates the history of the US bases in Bermuda and its role in the US Space Program."

Activities being offered will include guided walks, eco-tours, whale watching, bird watching, scuba, snorkeling and kayaking tours. There will be supervised camping opportunities within the nature reserve for schools and community groups.

Mr. James, who is also Sports Minister, added that Cooper's Island is next to areas used for triathlons and similar sports.

"Cooper's Island will substantially enhance these type of recreational and sporting opportunities. Efforts will be made to provide supporting facilities and programs that will complement the Nature Reserve."

Work involves the construction of a public transport hub and parking area although public access rights will be tailored to encourage pedestrian access only, except for emergency and service vehicles.

Restoration of a salt water marsh and creation of a new boardwalk has been completed.

A marine reserve around Cooper's Island will be created to protect the seagrass beds and associated flora and fauna while the submerged forest will be preserved from damage caused by anchoring and trampling.

There will be a 'no anchoring policy' within a 100-metre radius of the peninsula and permanent, environmentally-friendly mooring buoys 100 metres offshore for use by the boating public.

Explaining the details of the four-phase restoration program, Mr. James said the main short-term costs involved demolition of buildings and bunkers, removal of hard surfacing, limited environmental clean-up works, renovation of the former Mission Control building, new fencing and signage.

Longer terms costs include those associated with woodland management and habitat restoration, maintenance of buildings and grounds, staffing of the new Visitor and Recreation Centre and site security.

Annual maintenance costs will be around $500,000-650,000 a year and a range of jobs will be created including land managers, habitat specialists, ecologists, teachers and horticulturalists, said the Minister.

Opposition Environment Minister Cole Simons said Cooper's Island had unparalleled beauty, but he and Shadow Works and Engineering Minister Patricia Gordon-Pamplin questioned what the true cost of turning it into an eco-resort would be.

"Bringing this reserve to a reality will take a lot of work, a lot of diligence, a lot of planning," said Mr. Simons.

The Deputy Opposition Leader added that Cooper's Island and Clearwater should be protected under Bermuda's national parks to protect it from development.

Government MP Michael Scott described the site as a place which "creates happiness when you go in there because you immediately find serenity and silence".

Meanwhile Opposition Leader Kim Swan, while praising the plan, cautioned against over-development and commercialisation. This drew a rejecting roar from the Government side of the House, with Speaker Stanley Lowe asking him how was it related to the Cooper's Island development.

"Mr. Speaker," he resumed, "The Cooper's Island plan is a step in the right direction to help this community that has been long suffering with the growth that has taken place in Bermuda.

"It's important when you look at a nature reserve... I've had the opportunity to see those beaches that are there and they are a jewel — it's like stepping back in time when you arrive there."

He then voiced his concern about the need to keep the environmental atmosphere there intact. "And we need to ensure that is what remains.

"Because some of the things that could change that would be some of the very commercial things that the mindset that we present, the urban mindset that exists within many of us, can change that."

Government Whip Glenn Blakeney responded by saying, "(Mr. Swan) was like in his old days as a football goalkeeper — he was diving when there were no shots being taken at his goal.

"I don't think that anyone that has the slightest semblance of commonsense would even go as far as to voice an opinion regarding commercialisation and building... (and suggest that Government would not protect the nature reserve). This flies in the face of what the whole plan is about.

"And because of the proximity of that nature reserve, there would be a huge lobby against any building there or commercialisation because of the potential hazards it could cause with airplanes in the area."