World War II Bombs, Torpedoes and Mines: The Way Ocean Creatures Flourishes on Dumped Weapons

In the slightly salty sea off the German shoreline sits a collection of World War II explosives, torpedoes and naval mines. Discarded from vessels at the conclusion of the second world war and left behind, numerous explosives have fused into clusters over the decades. They form a corroding layer on the low-depth, silty seafloor of the Lübeck Bay in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and forgotten about. A growing number of tourists flocked to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for water sports, kite surfing and amusement parks. Below the waves, the weapons eroded.

We initially anticipated to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all poisoned, explains a scientist.

When the team went searching to see what they were doing to the marine environment, the team anticipated finding a lifeless zone, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, states Andrey Vedenin.

What they discovered astonished them. Vedenin recounts his scientists shouting with surprise when the ROV first sent the images back. That moment was a great moment, he notes.

Thousands of sea creatures had established habitats on the explosives, forming a revitalized marine community denser than the seabed surrounding it.

This underwater metropolis was proof to the persistence of life. Truly remarkable how much marine organisms we observe in places that are considered toxic and harmful, he says.

In excess of 40 starfish had clustered on to one exposed piece of explosive material. They were living on steel casings, fuse pockets and storage boxes just a short distance from its explosive filling. Fish, crustaceans, sea anemones and mussels were all discovered on the old munitions. It resembles a reef ecosystem in terms of the quantity of fauna that was there, states Vedenin.

Remarkable Population Density

An average of more than 40,000 creatures were dwelling on every meter squared of the explosives, scientists documented in their research on the finding. The surrounding area was much poorer in life, with only eight thousand creatures on every meter squared.

It is paradoxical that objects that are intended to kill all life are attracting so much life, says Vedenin. One can observe how nature adapts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, marine life finds its way to the most risky places.

Artificial Features as Ocean Environments

Man-made features such as sunken vessels, wind turbines, oil rigs and undersea pipes can provide replacements, replacing some of the destroyed marine environment. This research demonstrates that explosives could be similarly advantageous – the proliferation of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is likely to be duplicated in different areas.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tons of arms were dumped off the German coast. Countless of individuals placed them in vessels; a portion were placed in designated areas, others just discarded at sea during transport. This is the initial instance scientists have recorded how ocean organisms has adapted.

Worldwide Instances of Ocean Adaptation

• In the US, retired oil and gas structures have turned into coral reefs
• Sunken ships from the World War I have become habitats for marine life along the Potomac River in Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan in the Pacific island

These places become even more crucial for wildlife as the seas are increasingly depleted by fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Sunken ships and weapons dump sites effectively function as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of human activity is restricted, explains Vedenin. Consequently a lot of marine species that are usually uncommon or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are thriving.

Future Considerations

Anywhere warfare has occurred in the past 100 years, nearby oceans are typically containing explosives, states Vedenin. Many millions of tons of explosive material rest in our marine environments.

The locations of these munitions are insufficiently documented, partially because of sovereign limits, restricted armed forces records and the situation that documents are hidden in old files. They present an explosion and security hazard, as well as risk from the ongoing release of poisonous compounds.

As the German government and other countries begin removing these artifacts, experts hope to safeguard the marine communities that have established around them. In the Bay of Lübeck munitions are currently being cleared.

Researchers recommend replace these metal carcasses originating from weapons with some safer, various safe materials, like perhaps concrete structures, states Vedenin.

He currently aspires that what occurs in Lübeck establishes a model for substituting habitats after munitions removal in different areas – because even the most destructive armaments can become scaffolding for new life.