The public will have to bear the costs of the multi-million clean-up of Morgan's Point.

The former US Naval Air Station is heavily polluted with asbestos, metals, petroleum products and other chemicals. Any environmental remediation will have to tackle 500,000 gallons of jet fuel lying dormant, while Bassett's Cave has a layer of viscous oil some two feet deep floating on the surface.

An independent report in 1997 by consultants J.A. Jones Environmental Services Company, estimated the clean-up of the 260-acre peninsula at $15 million. Opposition MP Dr. Grant Gibbons, former Management and Technology Minister, has estimated that taking inflation into account at five percent, the removal of hazardous waste could now reach $25 million. He said remediation work could take "at least a couple of years".

The long-awaited clean-up of Morgan's Point was mentioned in February's Budget statement — but its costs to the taxpayer are currently unknown. On February 15, Environment Minister El James said the costs would not be as high as $25 million, but that an accurate sum was not yet available.

Government allocated $125.3 million in this year's Budget to a number of capital projects, which include the clean-up at Morgan's Point. It issued an RFP (Request for Proposals) for 'client representation services' last July, and is currently examining applications for a tender to manage the process. Government will then put out a tender another RFP, for the specialist clean-up.

In November, Premier Dr. Ewart Brown said taxpayers would foot the bill of the environmental remediation of Morgan's Point. "The Government is going to absorb the costs of the clean-up," said Dr. Brown.

The clean-up however, has been recommended both in Bermuda's draft Sustainable Development Strategy and Implementation Plan (SDSIP) and by the Sustainable Development Roundtable.

The SDSIP stated: "The continuing pressure for development on open space elsewhere on the Island could be relieved by using Morgan's Point. The trade-off is protecting greenfield sites across Bermuda from development, by utilising Morgan's Point which is a 'brownfield' site due to its previous development and resultant contamination."

The Sustainable Development Roundtable, at a meeting in November 2005, concluded: "The SDRT feels strongly that the highest priority for the Morgan's Point property is to clean it up so that it becomes usable.

"It is a piece of land that could enable us to save high quality land elsewhere, and protect open space in densely populated areas."

The Roundtable added: "As the largest piece of unutilised land in Bermuda, Morgan's Point will need to be used wisely."