World War II Munitions, Torpedo Heads and Mines: The Way Ocean Creatures Flourishes on Dumped Weapons

In the brackish sea off the Germany's shoreline sits a wasteland of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and naval mines. Dumped from vessels at the conclusion of the second world war and forgotten about, numerous weapons have become matted together over the years. They create a rusting layer on the low-depth, silty seafloor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the decades, the explosive stockpile was ignored and neglected. A growing number of tourists came to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for water sports, kiteboarding and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the munitions decayed.

Some of us expected to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, states the lead researcher.

When the first scientists went searching to see what they were doing to the marine environment, researchers expected to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all toxic, states a scientist.

What they found astonished them. Vedenin remembers his team members shouting with surprise when the submersible first transmitted footage. This was a memorable occasion, he says.

Thousands of marine animals had settled among the weapons, developing a revitalized marine community richer than the ocean bottom around it.

This marine city was testament to the tenacity of marine life. Indeed remarkable how much marine organisms we observe in locations that are supposed to be toxic and harmful, he explains.

More than 40 starfish had gathered on to one exposed chunk of TNT. They were residing on iron containers, ignition chambers and carrying containers just a short distance from its dangerous content. Marine fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all discovered on the historic weapons. It's similar to a reef ecosystem in terms of the abundance of creatures that was inhabiting the area, notes Vedenin.

Unexpected Population Density

An average of more than forty thousand animals were dwelling on every square metre of the explosives, experts wrote in their study on the observation. The nearby seabed was much poorer in life, with only eight thousand individuals on every meter squared.

It is paradoxical that things that are meant to destroy everything are attracting so much life, explains Vedenin. One can observe how nature evolves after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, marine life establishes itself to the most hazardous areas.

Artificial Structures as Ocean Habitats

Artificial features such as sunken vessels, offshore windfarms, drilling platforms and pipelines can provide replacements, compensating for some of the removed marine environment. This investigation shows that weapons could be comparably beneficial – the explosion of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is probable to be duplicated elsewhere.

Between the late 1940s and 1948, 1.6m tonnes of weapons were discarded off the Germany's coast. Numerous of workers transported them in vessels; some were placed in designated locations, the remainder just dumped while traveling. This is the initial instance researchers have studied how ocean organisms has reacted.

Global Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, decommissioned drilling platforms have turned into reef ecosystems
• Submerged vessels from the first world war have become homes for marine life along the Potomac River in Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan beach in the Pacific island

These locations become even more crucial for organisms as the oceans are increasingly denuded by commercial fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Sunken ships and weapons dump sites effectively act as protected areas – they are not national parks, but almost any kind of human activity is banned, states Vedenin. Therefore a lot of organisms that are typically scarce or decreasing, such as the cod fish, are prospering.

Future Issues

Wherever armed conflict has occurred in the last century, nearby oceans are usually containing munitions, explains Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of volatile compounds rest in our seas.

The locations of these munitions are inadequately recorded, in part because of national borders, secret armed forces records and the fact that records are stored in historical records. They create an explosion and safety hazard, as well as risk from the ongoing release of toxic chemicals.

As Germany and different states begin extracting these relics, scientists plan to preserve the marine communities that have developed around them. In the Lübeck Bay explosives are currently being cleared.

Researchers recommend substitute these steel remains remaining from munitions with some more secure, some non-dangerous materials, like perhaps concrete structures, suggests Vedenin.

He presently wishes that what transpires in Lübeck creates a model for substituting material after munitions removal in different areas – because including the most damaging armaments can become foundation for new life.