That's the opinion of National Trust Environmental Officer Ms Toby Butterfield who said Bermudians had to consider reducing the amount of household waste they produced in a year -- currently about 1.3 tons.

She advised people to cut their garbage to a minimum, re-using and recycling as much as possible, and then correctly disposing of whatever was left.

"Why do we create so much garbage?'' she asked. "Bermudians are good at water conservation. We need to apply the same thinking to waste.'' Reduction and awareness should be of prime concern, she stressed.

Bermudians were "a large family living in a small house''.

"Where do you put everything once you no longer need it? Garbage isn't something that just disappears.'' But Ms Butterfield said "green'' consumerism was more difficult than it looked. Manufacturers could "mislead'' buyers, she suggested, pointing a finger at paper plates printed with a "Save the Planet'' logo.

She recommended Bermudians consider the entire environmental impact of a product -- including the energy used to produce, transport and recycle.

Consciousness was paramount, she said. "Whatever you're buying, it's got to go somewhere.'' Public education is part of the job for Government Waste Management officer Ms Jane Brett.

"Loop'' the recycling bird, advertising, and awareness-talks in the community were among her responsibilities, she said.

"We just keep on pushing, trying to set up environmental committees within businesses which will set their offices on track and keep them going.'' The Corporation of Hamilton collects recyclables on a daily basis from businesses and shops. Corporation spokesman Mr. Roger Sherratt said: "We collect six days a week, and on Sunday there's an early morning call to restaurants that were open on Saturday night.'' However, he complained, people often did not separate recyclables properly so the entire bag could not be picked up.

The question of putting recycling bins on the street was "certainly something we could look at,'' he said.

But Mr. Sherratt explained the Corporation did not want to clutter the city by doubling the number of trash containers on the streets.

A Government telephone survey conducted in late June indicated that the recycling message was spreading.

Of 534 households contacted, more than 86 percent claimed to be involved in recycling.

Of those who did not recycle, most said they had too few recyclable goods or they did not have enough storage for collecting them.

The survey covered 2.4 percent of all Bermuda households.

Meanwhile, with the Tynes Bay incinerator still being built, Pembroke Dump remains part of an old-style means of disposing waste.

Agriculture, Fisheries and Parks conservation officer Dr. David Wingate said he would be helping to manage Pembroke Marsh once the dump was eventually closed.

"It is still the largest freshwater marsh in Bermuda -- there are 14 acres,'' he said.

The marsh was important as a breeding-ground for migratory and resident bird life, he said.

It also absorbed rainwater run-off from Hamilton which had become worse in recent years. Because most of the city was paved over, there was nowhere for the run-off to go, said Dr. Wingate.

But the impact of the dump on the marsh was much less than environmentalists feared, he said. The peat in the marsh was compressed, creating a seal between garbage and the water lens. Also, water in the marsh was not as contaminated as might be expected, because the marsh was connected by conduits to Mills Creek.

Dr. Wingate said he understood the plan for the dump was to seal it and landscape over the top. There would be no pollutants leaking out.

"It would become a time-capsule, sealed,'' he said.

The incinerator remains one of the keys to Bermuda's waste management future, designed to burn all waste cleanly -- even before recycling and waste separation comes into effect.

If it were burning at full capacity, with only one waste stream, including items such as PVC piping, batteries and waste oil, tests done by two separate teams showed no "scrubbers'' would be necessary, said Permanent Secretary for Environment, Dr. James Burnett-Herkes said.

However, there was space on the Tynes Bay site to accommodate the scrubbers, should they be required.

Separating garbage now made the incinerator safer than it was designed to be, Dr. Burnett-Herkes claimed.

Ms Jane Brett Mr. Roger Sherratt Dr. David Wingate. Dr. James Burnett-Herkes.