World War II Bombs, Torpedoes and Mines: How Marine Life Thrives on Discarded Weapons

In the brackish waters off the German shoreline sits a graveyard of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Thrown off boats at the end of the second world war and neglected, numerous explosives have accumulated over the years. They comprise a corroding layer on the low-depth, silty ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the decades, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and neglected. A increasing amount of visitors flocked to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for water sports, kiteboarding and entertainment venues. Beneath the surface, the munitions decayed.

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

When the initial researchers went investigating 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 poisoned, states the lead researcher.

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

Countless of marine animals had settled amid the munitions, developing a revitalized habitat richer than the sea floor surrounding it.

This underwater metropolis was evidence to the tenacity of life. It is actually astonishing how much life we discover in areas that are supposed to be toxic and harmful, he states.

In excess of 40 sea stars had clustered on to one accessible chunk of TNT. They were dwelling on steel casings, detonator compartments and transport cases just centimetres from its explosive filling. Marine fish, crustaceans, anemones and bivalves were all discovered on the discarded explosives. It resembles a coral reef in terms of the abundance of creatures that was there, states Vedenin.

Remarkable Population Density

An mean of more than forty thousand creatures were residing on every meter squared of the munitions, experts reported in their study on the finding. The surrounding area was much poorer in life, with only eight thousand individuals on every meter squared.

It is paradoxical that things that are meant to eliminate everything are drawing so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. You can see how the natural world adapts after a major disaster such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, marine life returns to the most hazardous areas.

Man-made Structures as Ocean Environments

Artificial constructions such as shipwrecks, offshore windfarms, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can provide substitutes, compensating for some of the removed marine environment. This investigation shows that munitions could be similarly positive – the bloom of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be found elsewhere.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6 million tons of munitions were discarded off the Germany's shoreline. Thousands of people placed them in barges; some were placed in allocated locations, others just thrown overboard while traveling. This is the first time scientists have documented how marine life has reacted.

Worldwide Instances of Ocean Transformation

• In the US, decommissioned oil and gas structures have turned into marine habitats
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become environments for creatures along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become environment to coral off Asan in the Pacific island

These locations become even more important for marine life as the oceans are increasingly denuded by commercial fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and weapons dump sites effectively function as sanctuaries – they are not official reserves, but nearly any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, explains Vedenin. Consequently a numerous of marine species that are otherwise rare or declining, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Future Factors

Anywhere armed conflict has taken place in the last century, adjacent waters are usually littered with weapons, says Vedenin. Many millions of tons of explosive material remain in our oceans.

The sites of these explosives are poorly mapped, in part because of national borders, secret armed forces records and the situation that archives are buried in historical records. They pose an detonation and safety hazard, as well as threat from the continuous leakage of hazardous substances.

As the German government and different states begin clearing these remains, researchers plan to preserve the marine communities that have established in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay weapons are currently being removed.

Researchers recommend substitute these metal carcasses remaining from munitions with certain more secure, various harmless structures, like perhaps artificial reefs, states Vedenin.

He currently wishes that what occurs in Lübeck sets a example for replacing habitats after weapon clearance in other locations – because even the most destructive armaments can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.