World War II Munitions, Torpedo Heads and Mines: The Way Marine Life Flourishes on Dumped Armaments

In the brackish sea off the Germany's coast sits a graveyard of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and naval mines. Thrown off vessels at the conclusion of the second world war and neglected, numerous explosives have fused into clusters over the years. They form a decaying layer on the shallow, silty ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic Sea.

Over the decades, the explosive stockpile was ignored and forgotten about. A growing number of visitors came to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Underwater, the munitions deteriorated.

Some of us thought to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all poisoned, states a scientist.

When the first scientists went looking to see what they were doing to the marine environment, researchers anticipated finding a desert, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, says the lead researcher.

What they discovered amazed them. Vedenin recounts his team members reacting with shock when the ROV first sent the images back. It was a memorable occasion, he notes.

Thousands of ocean life had established habitats among the munitions, developing a revitalized habitat more populous than the sea floor nearby.

This ocean community was testament to the resilience of life. Indeed astonishing how much marine organisms we find in places that are considered dangerous and dangerous, he says.

In excess of 40 starfish had gathered on to one accessible chunk of TNT. They were living on steel casings, fuse pockets and transport cases just a short distance from its dangerous content. Marine fish, crabs, anemones and bivalves were all observed on the historic weapons. It's similar to a coral reef in terms of the quantity of fauna that was inhabiting the area, says Vedenin.

Remarkable Creature Concentration

An average of more than 40,000 creatures were living on every square metre of the weapons, experts documented in their paper on the observation. The surrounding area was much poorer in life, with only 8,000 creatures on every square metre.

It is paradoxical that objects that are meant to kill all life are attracting so much marine organisms, states Vedenin. It's evident how the natural world adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, marine life returns to the most dangerous places.

Man-made Structures as Ocean Environments

Man-made structures such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can create alternatives, restoring some of the lost marine environment. This study demonstrates that munitions could be similarly positive – the explosion of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is expected to be repeated elsewhere.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6m tons of arms were dumped off the German coast. Thousands of workers transported them in vessels; some were placed in allocated sites, the remainder just discarded at sea while traveling. This is the initial instance researchers have studied how ocean organisms has adapted.

Worldwide Examples of Marine Adaptation

• In the United States, retired drilling platforms have turned into coral reefs
• Sunken ships from the World War I have become environments for creatures along the Potomac in Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become habitat to coral off Asan in Guam

These locations become even more crucial for marine life as the oceans are increasingly stripped by fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Sunken ships and explosive disposal locations essentially serve as protected areas – they are not official reserves, but nearly any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is restricted, explains Vedenin. As a result a numerous of marine species that are otherwise rare or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Future Issues

Wherever warfare has taken place in the recent history, nearby oceans are often strewn with weapons, says Vedenin. Millions of tons of dangerous substances lie in our seas.

The locations of these munitions are poorly mapped, partly because of international boundaries, classified armed forces records and the reality that archives are hidden in old files. They pose an explosion and safety hazard, as well as risk from the continuous emission of toxic chemicals.

As Germany and additional nations embark on clearing these remains, scientists aim to preserve the habitats that have established around them. In the Lübeck Bay weapons are currently being extracted.

It would be wise to replace these iron structures left from weapons with certain more secure, various harmless materials, like possibly man-made habitats, states Vedenin.

He presently aspires that what occurs in Lübeck creates a precedent for replacing material after weapon clearance elsewhere – because also the most damaging explosives can become foundation for new life.