Establishing the ramifications of a recent Supreme Court ruling on the South Basin development will be a priority for the West End Development Corporation’s new board in 2016.

The Bermuda Environmental Sustainability Taskforce (BEST) recently won its appeal against how the project was handled and specifically the end uses that the infrastructure would be put to.

However, it remains unclear what the long-term practical effects of the judgment will be on the development in Dockyard that will be used as the America’s Cup Village in 2017.

Andrew Dias, the general manager of Wedco, said: “We have been able to have one board meeting where the ruling has been brought up as a topic we will need to deal with moving forward.

“We have had preliminary discussions and at the beginning of this year once the new board has been appointed, we will make it one of our primary items to address and move forward. It is important we look at the whole picture before making any decisions.”

Earlier this year, BEST launched a legal action against the Development Applications Board (DAB) and the minister responsible for planning regarding the environmental impact of the West End project.

While the Bermuda Government had said the project was environmentally sound, BEST argued that the assessments that had been carried out were inadequate.

At the time of the Supreme Court ruling a spokesman for BEST said: “The court action permits the South Basin landfill and its interim use for the America’s Cup Event village, but rejects the end uses that developer Wedco had in mind, namely a commercial boatyard, a luxury marina and the consolidated offices and maintenance facility for the Marine and Ports Department.

“The core factor for BEST was that in a major development such as this one, the DAB had a mandatory and legal obligation to obtain the best possible environmental information on which to base its decision.

“However, the Environmental Impact Assessment that was initially conducted for the project was substandard and inadequate to uphold that obligation. The court’s decision vindicates BEST’s stance.”

Work on the project has already begun, with materials collected from the dredging of the North Channel as well as aggregate from overseas, being deposited in the South Basin.