“Home Soil” was the 18th episode and written by Robert Saboroff.
The Enterprise crew arrives at a dead planet where a team of scientists are performing terraforming experiments to bring life back to the planet. The team leader is reluctant to have an away team visit and we later learn that it’s because he suspects that the planet may have life, even intelligent life, inhabiting it afterall.
When of the scientist crew is killed when attempting to use the water hydraulics drill system that would put water in the ground. Data is almost killed when investigating the incident, saying that the lab machine anticipated his movements when recreating the experiment and it shoots deadly fire lasers.
Later, Captain Picard has the remaining surviving scientists meet in the observation lounge where he gets them to confess that they suspected intelligent life but ignored it and proceeded with their terraforming work.
One of the life forms is captured in a glass concealment container in the sickbay and begins exhibiting signs of intelligence and ultimately communicates with the crew telling them that the terraforming experiments were killing them.
The life form is reunited with its other like forms on the planet and the terraforming experiments abandoned.
I liked this episode because it shows how the federation and Starship crew respect all life forms and allow them to exist while giving up a life time science goal of inhabiting the planet for their own use.
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