World War II Explosives, Torpedoes and Naval Mines: How Marine Life Thrives on Dumped Armaments

In the slightly salty sea off the German coast sits a collection of World War II explosives, torpedoes and mines. Thrown off boats at the end of the World War II and neglected, countless explosives have become matted together over the years. They comprise a rusting blanket on the low-depth, silty ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western part of the Baltic Sea.

Over the decades, the wartime weapons was overlooked and neglected. A growing number of visitors flocked to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for water sports, kiteboarding and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the munitions eroded.

Some of us expected to see a barren area, with no life because it was all contaminated, says Andrey Vedenin.

When the team went looking to see what they were doing to the marine environment, some of us expected to see a desert, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, states the lead researcher.

What they observed surprised them. Vedenin recounts his team members exclaiming in amazement when the underwater vehicle first relayed pictures. That moment was a memorable occasion, he notes.

Thousands of ocean life had settled among the munitions, forming a regenerated marine community richer than the seabed around it.

This marine city was testament to the tenacity of life. It is actually surprising how much life we observe in places that are supposed to be toxic and risky, he explains.

Over 40 starfish had gathered on to one exposed fragment of TNT. They were dwelling on metal shells, detonator compartments and transport cases just centimetres from its dangerous content. Marine fish, crustaceans, anemones and bivalves were all discovered on the old munitions. It's similar to a marine reef in terms of the quantity of fauna that was present, says Vedenin.

Remarkable Population Density

An average of more than forty thousand creatures were living on every meter squared of the weapons, researchers wrote in their research on the discovery. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only 8,000 creatures on every square metre.

It is paradoxical that objects that are designed to destroy everything are hosting so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. You can see how the natural world adapts after a devastating occurrence such as the second world war and how, in some way, marine life establishes itself to the most risky places.

Artificial Features as Ocean Habitats

Artificial constructions such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can offer replacements, restoring some of the removed marine environment. This research reveals that weapons could be comparably positive – the proliferation of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be duplicated in other locations.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tons of arms were disposed of off the Germany's shoreline. Numerous of workers transported them in vessels; a portion were placed in allocated locations, others just dumped during transport. This is the initial instance scientists have studied how marine life has adapted.

Worldwide Examples of Ocean Transformation

• In the United States, retired energy installations have turned into marine habitats
• Shipwrecks from the World War I have become environments for wildlife along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become environment to reef-building organisms off Asan beach in the Pacific island

These areas become even more important for marine life as the marine environments are increasingly stripped by fishing, bottom trawling and anchoring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations effectively serve as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but almost any kind of human activity is banned, says Vedenin. Therefore a lot of species that are usually rare or declining, such as the Baltic cod, are prospering.

Future Issues

Anywhere warfare has taken place in the past 100 years, nearby oceans are usually strewn with explosives, states Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of dangerous substances rest in our marine environments.

The locations of these munitions are poorly documented, in part because of international boundaries, classified defense data and the reality that records are hidden in historical records. They create an explosion and security danger, as well as danger from the persistent release of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and other countries start removing these remains, experts plan to protect the habitats that have developed nearby. In the Bay of Lübeck explosives are already being removed.

We should substitute these iron structures originating from weapons with some less dangerous, various non-dangerous objects, like perhaps man-made habitats, states Vedenin.

He presently hopes that what occurs in Lübeck creates a model for substituting habitats after weapon clearance elsewhere – because even the most harmful weaponry can become foundation for marine organisms.