The estimated cost of cleaning up polluted Morgan's Point has risen again — with Government now setting a budget of $35 million for the project.

Works and Engineering permanent secretary Robert Horton told The Royal Gazette last week that the bulk of the work needed at the former US Naval Annex was expected to cost $28.5 million, as we reported on Friday.

But that day, Works and Engineering Minister Derrick Burgess told the House of Assembly that total authorised funding (TAF) for the project was estimated to be $6.5 million more.

His Opposition counterpart Patricia Gordon-Pamplin told this newspaper: "I am not sure about the cost of $28.5 million versus $35 million, but if history is an indicator, both those numbers will in the end be seriously understated."

Mr. Horton explained the $35 million figure yesterday. He said: "This TAF value was arrived at using the design team's construction cost estimate, based on the known quantities and typical industry unit rates for properly dealing with hazardous and non-hazardous wastes.

"The design team's construction cost estimate was $28.5 million. As is normal for these types of environmental remediation projects, the design team recommended that a further contingency of 20 percent of the construction cost be applied to account for unknown underground wastes that could not be safely measured before the work begins.

"In addition, the project needs to be supervised during the construction period, as well as monitored after the remediation is complete, as part of the quality assurance procedure — hence the TAF of $35 million."

Morgan's Point was left heavily polluted with asbestos, metals, petroleum products and other chemicals when the American military left the Island in 1995.

The peninsula, which straddles Southampton and Sandys, has been left to decay but the Southlands Ltd. company wants to build a luxury resort there and presented its plans to Cabinet last week.

Nothing has been set aside in this year's Budget for the environmental clean-up but Mr. Burgess told MPs: "Consultants have been retained by the Ministry and have completed the baseline environmental testing of the site and the remediation strategy.

"Tenders for the remediation works have been returned and evaluated. This project has been delayed pending decisions regarding alternative sources of funding for the clean-up."

He said $241,000 had been spent on the project so far. Mr. Horton told this newspaper: "The expenditure to date is predominantly as a result of the design development and initial tree clearing contract."

Shadow Works and Engineering Minister Mrs. Gordon-Pamplin said she was concerned if public private partnering (PPP) was being considered for Morgan's Point, as well as the hospital and new crossing at Castle Harbour.

But Mr. Horton told us: "No consideration has been given to the PPP process for the environmental clean-up of Morgan's Point."

Mrs. Gordon-Pamplin said Government had nearly exhausted its capacity for borrowing and could be forced down the PPP path.

"My view concerning PPPs is that it is more expensive money to use, as investors' expected return on investment is a business decision and not a benevolent one," she added.