A fresh boardwalk for the Paget Marsh nature reserve is planned for New Year, according to the Bermuda National Trust.The walkway, which was built in 1998, fell into decay and has been closed off to the public.Even the signpost for the nature walk has succumbed to rot.“Sadly we were forced to close it temporarily as a precaution for public safety,” explained the Trust’s conservation officer David Outerbridge.“We have conducted and completed structural survey of the structure and evaluated the extent of the rot and damage.“Following receipt of the engineer’s report, the Trust successfully applied to the XL Foundation for funding to carry out remediation and the replacement of the damaged sections.”The Foundation has agreed to support the repairs and the cost of replacement signs. Work is expected to start next month.Environmentalist David Wingate was the Government Conservation Officer at the time the walk was built by the Audubon Society and BNT.“We went to a lot of trouble to choose a timber that was known to be very durable in wet conditions, like greenheart.“But that type of wood is very tough to come by right now. We didn’t want to rape the environment in South America. We used a timber known as Ipe, which is commercially grown,” Dr Wingate said.“It’s supposed to be very durable, and most of it has stood up well. But there was a problem with some of the bolts that we used.“Nearly everything we used is stainless steel. But some parts of it underneath developed rust problems where the bolts were used.”Added Dr Wingate: “We might look at using plastic imitation timber for replacements.“At the time we didn’t, because the type available tended to warp in the head. There are improvements all the time.”The walkway through the marsh, which covers one of Bermuda’s most pristine environments, is designed to cover as many different habitats as possible in the shortest distance.