t € An alternative is to let a few islanders return and reestablish residence on Bikini in its present condition, This is rejected because of the moral responsibility as well as the political, sociological and economic, need to rehabilitate the islanders. Survival would be difficult and the redevelopment of Bikini, without support of modern equipment and methods, would be a painfully slow process covering generations. Such approach would be inconsistent with the goal of assisting the Bikinians to build a new and model community. Another approach to resettlement would be to cleanup and redevelop facilities to accommodate only the few returning islanders who could subsist in Bikini's present environment. This is rejected because of the need to resettle and provide as suitable an environment for all of the displaced islanders who have rights to Bikini and who desire to return, not just the few who might be disposed to attempt to survive under Bikini's present conditions. Yet another possibility would be to undertake a replanting and reconstruction program to accommodate all those who desire to return to Bikini now. This is not recommended because newly planted coconut trees require six to ten years of growth before they are sufficiently productive to provide subsistence and an export crop of copra. If all islanders desiring to return were resettled on Bikini at the outset of the replanting progran, they would ‘have to be subsidized for several years. as socially or economically desirable. -6- This is not regarded