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The issue of importing foreign soil may have gone quiet but it has not gone away.

For those who may not remember, the Bermuda government is proposing to import fifteen to twenty container loads (I don't think we've been told exactly how much) of clay soil to make an international standard cricket pitch at the National Stadium.

There are a number of concerns about this move, concerns I sincerely hope will be debated in Parliament before soil is actually imported.

The over-riding concern is the possibility that the soil entering Bermuda could contain organisms that could harm our existing plants and, possibly, animals.

We do have experience with accidentally introduced pests; most notably the cedar scale, which has very nearly wiped out an important species. One deliberate introduction was the kiskadee.

This bird has had no appreciable affect on the anolis lizard, the pest it was brought in to target. It did, however, wipe out the cicada or Bermuda Singer, a harmless and endearing insect to boys of my generation.

Environment Minister Butterfield and her Cabinet colleagues insist that the soil will be treated twice, at its point of origin and at its destination (here), to ensure there are no environmental repercussions. However, we should be very clear about the treatment process, how and where it will be done, and how we will test its effectiveness.

What exactly would it take to effectively sterilize the soil once it arrived here? The soil could be heat-treated or irradiated, but as a one-time deal we would most likely opt for fumigation using Methyl Bromide, a gas so potent it has been banned from importation in Bermuda for years.

Methyl Bromide is one of the gases implicated in the depletion of the ozone layer, thus adding indirectly to the global risk of skin cancer.

The Bermuda Government would have to prove its case and obtain a waiver to violate the "Montreal Protocol" an international agreement eliminating the use of ozone-depleting gases.

The more difficult task is in the details of fumigation.

Clay is one of the most difficult soil types to penetrate with fumigants. It will have to be raked or sifted to get into a sand-like consistency. To allow full penetration of the fumigant, the soil will then have to be spread out in a layer about 1ft thick - that's from the directions on the Methyl Bromide label. A single container load of soil, spread out, would cover about 1,280 sq ft.

Quarantine

The soil would have to be quarantined so as not to allow contamination of the local environment. There's the unpredictability of wind and other weather and the issue of containment (plastic liner under and above the soil layer).

Using machinery adds a dimension of cleaning to avoid transporting contaminated soil elsewhere.

In any case, everyone involved will need protective clothing and the area will need to be secure from accidental or deliberate breaches of the quarantine.

The cost estimated locally for the above process could be as high as $750k.

The soil is slated to receive fumigation or heat-treating before it leaves its point of origin.

When one adds the cost of purchasing, transporting and installing the soil the overall cost is anyone's guess.

And all this is for a single cricket pitch?

There are still alternatives not yet fully explored, such as an artificial pitch. And I've heard there's a local groundsman who says he could do the job with local resources.

Either might be preferable to the costs and risks of importing soil.[[In-content Ad]]

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