500 Million Years Beneath The Sea

Series: The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau

Duration: 24

Genre: Educational

Year Published: 1975

Creator: Churchill Films

Format: 16mm

Sound: sound

Description: Episode of Series “The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau”. Jacques Cousteau and his divers survey the 500 million years of life beneath the sea and explain how man’s exploitation of the natural resources of the coastal zones of the world are jeopardising this life.

Complete Record: In a South Pacific lagoon, Jacques Cousteau and his divers discover that 500 million years of life are in jeopardy today because of man’s exploitation of the natural resources in the world’s coastal zones. Coral reefs provide a natural habitat for hundreds of species of animals, and Cousteau traces the destruction of coral to the refuse dumped into the sea from a large mining operation. Of particular interest is the increase in number of the venomous sea snake, an air breathing sea animal not affected by the oxygen depletion which destroys other species. Cousteau photographs the 500 million year old pearly nautilus that symbolizes the natural stability and balance of the sea. Then he takes the viewer below the surface of a South Pacific lagoon to show how pollution is killing the coral.