World War II Munitions, Torpedo Heads and Mines: How Marine Life Thrives on Dumped Weapons

In the slightly salty waters off the German coast sits a collection of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Thrown off vessels at the conclusion of the World War II and neglected, numerous weapons have become matted together over the decades. They create a decaying layer on the shallow, silty ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western tip of the Baltic.

Over the years, the explosive stockpile was overlooked and neglected. A increasing amount of tourists traveled to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the munitions decayed.

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

When the initial researchers went investigating to see what they were doing to the marine environment, the team thought they would find a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, says the lead researcher.

What they discovered astonished them. Vedenin recalls his scientists exclaiming in amazement when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. It was a remarkable experience, he notes.

Thousands of ocean life had settled among the weapons, developing a revitalized habitat denser than the sea floor around it.

This marine city was testament to the persistence of life. Indeed remarkable how much marine organisms we find in areas that are expected to be dangerous and harmful, he says.

More than 40 sea stars had clustered on to one exposed fragment of TNT. They were residing on steel casings, fuse pockets and storage boxes just a short distance from its dangerous content. Fish, crustaceans, sea anemones and bivalves were all observed on the discarded explosives. It's similar to a coral reef in terms of the quantity of animal life that was there, states Vedenin.

Unexpected Creature Concentration

An mean of more than 40,000 animals were dwelling on every square metre of the munitions, scientists wrote in their study on the discovery. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only eight thousand organisms on every meter squared.

It is ironic that items that are intended to destroy all life are drawing so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. It's evident how nature evolves after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in some way, marine life establishes itself to the most risky areas.

Artificial Features as Ocean Habitats

Artificial structures such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can create substitutes, compensating for some of the removed marine environment. This investigation demonstrates that weapons could be similarly advantageous – the bloom of marine organisms on those in the Lübeck Bay is likely to be repeated in other locations.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6m tonnes of munitions were dumped off the Germany's coast. Thousands of individuals loaded them in vessels; a portion were dropped in allocated areas, the remainder just discarded at sea while traveling. This is the first time scientists have studied how ocean organisms has responded.

Global Examples of Ocean Adaptation

• In the US, decommissioned energy installations have transformed into marine habitats
• Shipwrecks from the World War I have become homes for creatures along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan in Guam

These areas become even more important for organisms as the marine environments are increasingly depleted by commercial fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and weapons dump sites practically function as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of human activity is restricted, says Vedenin. Consequently a numerous of species that are otherwise scarce or diminishing, such as the Baltic cod, are flourishing.

Future Factors

Anywhere warfare has happened in the recent history, nearby oceans are typically littered with explosives, states Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of dangerous substances remain in our marine environments.

The positions of these munitions are inadequately recorded, partly because of national borders, secret military information and the reality that documents are stored in historic archives. They create an explosion and security hazard, as well as danger from the continuous emission of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and different states start removing these artifacts, scientists hope to preserve the habitats that have developed in their vicinity. In the Bay of Lübeck weapons are presently being extracted.

It would be wise to replace these iron structures remaining from munitions with certain more secure, some harmless structures, like maybe concrete structures, suggests Vedenin.

He now hopes that what transpires in the Bay of Lübeck establishes a precedent for substituting material after munitions removal elsewhere – because even the most destructive explosives can become foundation for new life.