World War II Explosives, Torpedo Heads and Mines: How Ocean Creatures Flourishes on Discarded Weapons

In the slightly salty waters off the German shoreline rests a graveyard of Nazi bombs, torpedo heads and mines. Discarded from barges at the conclusion of the second world war and forgotten about, numerous munitions have fused into clusters over the years. They comprise a rusting blanket on the shallow, muddy seafloor of the Lübeck Bay in the western part of the Baltic Sea.

Over the decades, the explosive stockpile was ignored and neglected. A increasing amount of visitors flocked to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for water sports, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Beneath the surface, the weapons deteriorated.

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

When the first scientists went looking to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, some of us expected to see a barren area, with no life because it was all contaminated, states a scientist.

What they observed astonished them. Vedenin remembers his team members reacting with shock when the ROV first relayed pictures. That moment was a remarkable experience, he notes.

Countless of marine animals had established habitats amid the weapons, developing a revitalized marine community more populous than the seabed surrounding it.

This marine city was testament to the resilience of life. Truly astonishing how much life we observe in areas that are considered dangerous and risky, he states.

In excess of 40 sea stars had gathered on to one exposed fragment of explosive material. They were living on steel casings, fuse pockets and storage boxes just centimetres from its volatile core. Fish, crustaceans, sea anemones and bivalves were all discovered on the historic weapons. It resembles a coral reef in terms of the quantity of animal life that was inhabiting the area, says Vedenin.

Unexpected Creature Concentration

An average of more than forty thousand creatures were dwelling on every meter squared of the munitions, researchers documented in their research on the observation. The surrounding area was much poorer in life, with only 8,000 creatures on every square metre.

It is paradoxical that items that are intended to kill everything are attracting so much life, explains Vedenin. You can see how nature adapts after a major disaster such as the World War II and how, in some way, marine life returns to the most hazardous locations.

Man-made Structures as Marine Environments

Artificial features such as sunken vessels, offshore windfarms, oil rigs and undersea pipes can offer alternatives, replacing some of the destroyed habitat. This research demonstrates that explosives could be comparably positive – the proliferation of marine organisms on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be repeated in other locations.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tons of weapons were dumped off the German coast. Thousands of individuals loaded them in barges; some were placed in allocated sites, others just dumped during transport. This is the initial instance researchers have studied how ocean organisms has responded.

Worldwide Instances of Ocean Adaptation

• In the US, decommissioned energy installations have become coral reefs
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become habitats for wildlife along the Potomac in Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become environment to reef-building organisms off Asan in Guam

These places become even more important for organisms as the oceans are increasingly stripped by fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Sunken ships and explosive disposal locations effectively serve as refuges – they are not national parks, but almost any kind of human activity is banned, says Vedenin. As a result a numerous of marine species that are usually uncommon or declining, such as the cod fish, are thriving.

Coming Considerations

Wherever armed conflict has occurred in the last century, nearby oceans are usually strewn with munitions, states Vedenin. Many millions of tons of volatile compounds lie in our oceans.

The positions of these munitions are poorly documented, partially because of international boundaries, restricted defense data and the situation that archives are stored in historic archives. They pose an explosion and safety danger, as well as threat from the persistent release of poisonous compounds.

As the German government and additional nations embark on removing these relics, experts plan to safeguard the habitats that have developed in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay explosives are already being cleared.

We should substitute these metal carcasses originating from weapons with certain more secure, some harmless structures, like perhaps artificial reefs, suggests Vedenin.

He now wishes that what transpires in Lübeck establishes a model for replacing habitats after explosive extraction in other locations – because even the most damaging armaments can become framework for ocean ecosystems.