Nuclear Testing

Their concerns were voiced after the first meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

In a statement released today, PANG calls on the Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which came into force in January last year, that they must prioritize and address the impacts of nuclear testing legacies on people and the environment in the Pacific Islands.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye called it an act of "self-destruction" which showed the "maniacal recklessness" of leader Kim Jong-un.

It was detected as a 5.3 magnitude quake close to the nuclear test site.

The North has not commented, but analysts fear this could be a sign of the rogue state's nuclear progress.

Previous artificial earthquakes in the same area and of that magnitude have all been nuclear tests.

The day marked 20 years since passionate locals rallied together to promote an anti-nuclear Pacific, and five of those individuals came together to reminisce.

Brian Mason, Travis Moore, Peter Heays, Jolene Bosanquet and Cook Islands Voyaging Society captain Tua Pittman recounted the days they made history in our small nation.

“We did our best. We dared to care. We were part of the most amazing Pacific wide campaign,” said Bosanquet.

Nuclear weapons testing in Pacific waters occurred between 1966 and 1996 at Mururoa and Fangataufa in French Polynesia.

The Runit Dome was constructed in 1979 to temporarily store radioactive waste produced from nuclear testing by the United States military during the 1950s and 1960s.

The Marshallese community raised concerns over damage to the dome after Typhoon Nangka hit in July causing significant damage to homes and infrastructure on the atoll.

Our correspondent, Giff Johnson says the team surveying the dome found the cracks have been developing over time.

Runit (or Cactus) dome was used for Cold War nuclear testing by the US government for 10 years from 1948. There were 42 tests in total on Enewetak Atoll, including 22 explosions on platforms, barges and underwater in the space of just three months in 1958, just before a moratorium on atomic testing.

In the late 1970s, an estimated 73,000 cubic metres of contaminated topsoil was deposited in the Cactus nuclear test crater beneath the dome, according to a report commissioned by the US government.

It was only supposed to be a temporary measure — but the dome remains.