World War II Explosives, Torpedo Heads and Naval Mines: How Marine Life Flourishes on Discarded Armaments

In the slightly salty waters off the German coast rests a graveyard of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Dumped from vessels at the conclusion of the World War II and left behind, countless munitions have fused into clusters over the decades. They create a corroding layer on the low-depth, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the decades, the Nazi arsenal was overlooked and forgotten about. A increasing amount of tourists traveled to the coastal areas and calm waters for water sports, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Beneath the surface, the weapons decayed.

We initially expected to see a barren area, with no organisms because it was all toxic, explains a scientist.

When the team went looking to see what they were affecting to the ecosystem, some of us expected to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, says a scientist.

What they discovered amazed them. Vedenin recalls his colleagues reacting with shock when the submersible first transmitted footage. It was a remarkable experience, he recalls.

Numerous of sea creatures had established habitats on the explosives, forming a renewed ecosystem more populous than the seabed surrounding it.

This marine city was testament to the resilience of marine life. It is actually surprising how much marine organisms we observe in locations that are expected to be hazardous and dangerous, he says.

In excess of 40 sea stars had gathered on to one accessible chunk of explosive material. They were living on iron containers, ignition chambers and carrying containers just centimetres from its explosive filling. Fish, crustaceans, sea anemones and mussels were all observed on the old munitions. It's similar to a marine reef in terms of the abundance of fauna that was present, states Vedenin.

Surprising Creature Concentration

An average of more than forty thousand creatures were living on every square metre of the munitions, experts documented in their research on the finding. The nearby seabed was much sparser, with only eight thousand creatures on every square metre.

It is ironic that objects that are intended to kill all life are drawing so much marine organisms, explains Vedenin. It's evident how the natural world adapts after a major disaster such as the second world war and how, in some way, life returns to the most risky locations.

Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats

Artificial structures such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can offer alternatives, compensating for some of the lost marine environment. This study reveals that munitions could be similarly beneficial – the proliferation of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is likely to be repeated elsewhere.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6m tons of munitions were dumped off the Germany's coast. Countless of individuals transported them in boats; a portion were dropped in designated sites, others just dumped en route. This is the first time scientists have studied how ocean organisms has reacted.

Global Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, retired oil and gas structures have become marine habitats
• Submerged vessels from the first world war have become homes for marine life along the Potomac River in Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan beach in the Pacific island

These areas become even more valuable for organisms as the oceans are increasingly denuded by fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Sunken ships and weapons dump sites practically function as protected areas – they are not official reserves, but nearly any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is restricted, explains Vedenin. Consequently a many of organisms that are otherwise uncommon or decreasing, such as the cod fish, are prospering.

Coming Considerations

Anywhere military conflict has taken place in the last century, adjacent waters are usually containing weapons, explains Vedenin. Millions of tons of explosive material rest in our oceans.

The locations of these munitions are inadequately documented, partially because of national borders, secret armed forces records and the reality that records are hidden in old files. They present an detonation and security hazard, as well as risk from the continuous emission of hazardous substances.

As the German government and additional nations start removing these remains, experts aim to safeguard the marine communities that have developed around them. In the Lübeck Bay munitions are already being cleared.

It would be wise to substitute these iron structures originating from munitions with certain safer, various harmless structures, like maybe artificial reefs, says Vedenin.

He currently hopes that what happens in Lübeck creates a example for replacing material after explosive extraction in different areas – because also the most harmful armaments can become framework for ocean ecosystems.