Nazi Explosives, Torpedoes and Mines: The Way Marine Life Prosper on Discarded Armaments

In the slightly salty sea off the Germany's shoreline sits a collection of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and naval mines. Dumped from barges at the end of the World War II and forgotten about, thousands weapons have fused into clusters over the decades. They comprise a decaying blanket on the shallow, silty ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic Sea.

Over the years, the explosive stockpile was overlooked and forgotten about. A increasing amount of visitors traveled to the coastal areas and calm waters for water sports, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Below the waves, the munitions deteriorated.

Some of us anticipated to see a lifeless zone, with no life because it was all poisoned, explains the lead researcher.

When the initial researchers went looking to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, some of us thought they would find a lifeless zone, with no life because it was all toxic, says the lead researcher.

What they found astonished them. Vedenin remembers his team members reacting with shock when the ROV first sent the images back. That moment was a remarkable experience, he recalls.

Thousands of sea creatures had settled among the munitions, developing a renewed habitat denser than the ocean bottom surrounding it.

This marine city was evidence to the tenacity of marine life. It is actually surprising how much marine organisms we discover in places that are expected to be hazardous and dangerous, he says.

Over 40 sea stars had clustered on to one exposed fragment of TNT. They were dwelling on iron containers, fuse pockets and storage boxes just a short distance from its volatile core. Marine fish, crabs, sea anemones and bivalves were all observed on the discarded explosives. You could compare it with a coral reef in terms of the abundance of fauna that was present, says Vedenin.

Surprising Population Density

An average of more than 40,000 animals were residing on every meter squared of the explosives, scientists reported in their paper on the observation. The adjacent region was much poorer in life, with only eight thousand creatures on every square metre.

It is ironic that items that are meant to eliminate all life are drawing so much life, states Vedenin. You can see how nature adjusts after a devastating occurrence such as the second world war and how, in some way, marine life returns to the most hazardous areas.

Man-made Features as Ocean Habitats

Man-made features such as shipwrecks, offshore windfarms, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can offer replacements, replacing some of the lost marine environment. This research reveals that weapons could be similarly beneficial – the proliferation of marine organisms on those in the Bay of Lübeck is expected to be found in different areas.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tons of weapons were dumped off the Germany's coast. Thousands of workers placed them in barges; some were placed in allocated areas, others just dumped while traveling. This is the first time experts have recorded how marine life has reacted.

Worldwide Examples of Ocean Adaptation

• In the United States, retired energy installations have transformed into coral reefs
• Shipwrecks from the World War I have become environments for marine life along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan in Guam

These places become even more crucial for organisms as the oceans are increasingly depleted by fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations essentially serve as sanctuaries – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, states Vedenin. As a result a lot of marine species that are usually uncommon or declining, such as the cod fish, are thriving.

Coming Issues

Anywhere warfare has taken place in the past 100 years, adjacent waters are typically containing weapons, states Vedenin. Many millions of tons of dangerous substances remain in our marine environments.

The positions of these munitions are inadequately mapped, partly because of sovereign limits, restricted armed forces records and the situation that documents are hidden in historic archives. They create an detonation and security danger, as well as danger from the persistent release of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and additional nations embark on clearing these remains, experts plan to protect the marine communities that have established nearby. In the Bay of Lübeck explosives are already being extracted.

Researchers recommend replace these metal carcasses left from munitions with some less dangerous, some safe structures, like perhaps artificial reefs, states Vedenin.

He now wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck sets a precedent for replacing habitats after explosive extraction in different areas – because even the most destructive explosives can become foundation for marine organisms.