Local athletes that test positive for the use of some illicit substances, such as marijuana, could have more lenient sanctions imposed against them in the very near future.

Bermuda Council for Drug Free Sport (BCDS), the Island's sole anti-doping organisation, is currently reviewing its Standard Operating Procedures that could possibly result in drastic, if not controversial, reforms being applied.

"We are currently in the final review of our domestic procedures and are hoping to reduce the penalty for the use of illicit drugs," BCDS program director Cathy Belvedere revealed.

"It really makes no sense that on the world stage you can have an athlete test positive for marijuana and get a three to 12 month ban and than we say on our domestic programme that it's an automatic one-year ban.

"So we are looking at revising that and it's actually with the lawyers at the moment."

Potential revisions to BCDS policies could be welcoming news to those who have long opposed the organisation's existing methods which they argue places specific emphasis on the use of illicit substances rather than performance enhancing substances.

In recent times international federations, such as Fifa, have challenged World Anti-Doping Association (WADA) policies that enforce harsh punishment on athletes that test positive for illicit or recreational substances.

"There are a couple of international federations that have gone against the grain, with Fifa in fact being one of them," Belvedere said.

"If an athlete is found positive for an illicit substance Fifa will actually sanction them anywhere from three to 12 months, rather than the two years. And that's because Fifa, who are actually fighting with WADA at the moment, recognise that the use of illicit drugs is a social issue and not something that is enhancing the performance of their athletes.

"Consequently, our Board has brought on a consultant with legal expertise that can help us determine where we are and what we are doing and whether what we've got meets things like the Human Rights Act."

Earlier this week it was revealed that three cricketers had failed "pre-event" drugs scans that are mandatory for all local athletes at the national level.

The trio now face a potential one-year ban from both international and domestic cricket under existing BCDS SOPs.

The BCDS, appointed by Government in 2004, is a signatory of WADA which was formed to promote, coordinate and monitor at the international level the fight against doping in sports in all its forms.