A brief mine-clearing spell in the 2009-10 summer season raised hopes the islands' scenic spots would once again become safe to use but neither the Falklands government nor the private sector had resources to prolong the operation.

Argentina and Britain battled on the islands and the Atlantic waters for 74 days after an Argentine military-led invasion tried to wrest control. British forces beat back the Argentines, who planted thousands of mines across the territories before pulling back to their country.

Despite the British forces' mine-clearing works after the war and the privately run government-financed pilot project two years ago, at least 25,000 mines are embedded in the islands' sometimes idyllic landscapes.

Current mine-clearing operations are being run by the Falkland Islands Joint Services Explosive Ordnance Disposal, part of the British military, which recently moved headquarters from Stanley to the British military base at Mount Pleasant.

Mine-clearing teams from British contractor Bactec funded by Britain cleared four minefields of more than 1,200 mines during the 2009-10 summer operation. The mine-clearing crews concentrated on Stanley and several settlements on the East and West Islands and were aided by British forces' own mine-clearing teams.

British forces cleared more than 1,000 Argentine anti-personnel mines, 80 anti-vehicle mines and 1,000 booby traps in 30 minefields after the war but didn't reach many other areas across the islands.

Risk of embedded mines has kept tourists away from many areas that formed part of the Falklands' traditional attractions. The presence of mines has also widened the habitat available to penguins, which are too lightweight to set off mines and have multiplied to the delight of tour operators.

British forces have been running an awareness program to warn children and adults of risks from wandering into areas known to contain unexploded bombs and mines.

British and Falklands forces say they have cleared more than 2.8 million items of ordnance since the war ended. Mine-clearing crews found bullets, fragments or parts of flares and grenades, rockets, mortar shells and 1,000-pound bombs during the mine-clearing operations.

Britain put Falklands demining on the back burner after the war but its accession to the Ottawa Convention in 1998 prompted a review and commitment to do something about the mines.

Last year's pilot project was part of a plan still set to resume some time into the future to get rid of the mines altogether.

Retreating Argentine forces handed over maps of the minefields but could do little when it became clear most mines were too sophisticated and had few metal components, making detection difficult.

Bactec called in Zimbabwean deminers, who had worked previously clearing mines on the Mozambique border. But the pilot projects couldn't be extended to include other mined areas because of funding limits.

There's no official word on when the demining may resume. British defense cutbacks have put a question mark on the whole exercise.

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