Treasure islands in the Pacific - From the Chatham Islands to Enewetak (2/2) | DW Documentary

It's an adventurous journey into a remote and fascinating world: in the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, expensive delicacies thrive, atolls appear to be on the brink of disappearing, and a massive nuclear waste site is at risk of bursting.

For this two-part documentary, a camera team travels in a propeller plane to the "treasure islands” of the Pacific. They circumnavigate an area that - though roughly the size of China and the USA combined - has only half the population of Berlin.

On the Chatham Islands, we learn how loneliness becomes a daily challenge when you live surrounded by so much water. A supply ship fails to arrive on time, leading to food prices rising quickly and diesel becoming scarce. But there is a treasure that is harvested in this remote region - something prized by gourmets that fetches high prices: abalone. Jade Kahukore-Dixon dives for these precious sea snails, gathering them at depths of 10 to 15 meters. "On a good day, I can earn around 2,000 to 2,500 New Zealand dollars," he says. But the job is dangerous. This is great white shark territory. Divers are regularly injured or even killed. What some see as a treasure, others view as a burden.

Over on the Marshall Islands, we find the area where the United States tested atomic and hydrogen bombs until the 1960s. The people of these remote atolls are still living with the consequences. On Runit Island lies one of the world’s largest nuclear waste sites - the structural integrity of which is now under threat because of rising sea levels and tropical storms.
On Tuvalu, the team discovers that not all the bleak prophecies may withstand closer scrutiny.

The film is dedicated to Jade Kahukore-Dixon, the 24-year-old diver on the Chatham Islands whom the team accompanied during his work. Jade Kahukore-Dixon was killed by a great white shark two months after filming ended.

Part 1:    • Treasure islands in the Pacific - From Haw...  

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