Nazi Explosives, Torpedo Heads and Mines: How Ocean Creatures Flourishes on Dumped Armaments

In the brackish waters off the German shoreline lies a collection of Nazi bombs, torpedo heads and mines. Discarded from boats at the end of the World War II and forgotten about, numerous weapons have fused into clusters over the years. They comprise a rusting carpet on the low-depth, silty ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic Sea.

Over the decades, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and neglected. A growing number of visitors flocked to the coastal areas and calm waters for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the weapons decayed.

We initially expected to see a barren area, with nothing living there because it was all toxic, says the lead researcher.

When the initial researchers went searching to see what they were doing to the marine environment, researchers anticipated finding a lifeless zone, with no life because it was all poisoned, says the lead researcher.

What they observed amazed them. Vedenin recalls his team members reacting with shock when the submersible first transmitted footage. It was a memorable occasion, he notes.

Countless of marine animals had settled among the munitions, forming a regenerated marine community denser than the seabed surrounding it.

This underwater metropolis was proof to the tenacity of life. It is actually surprising how much marine organisms we observe in locations that are expected to be hazardous and dangerous, he explains.

In excess of 40 starfish had clustered on to one exposed fragment of TNT. They were dwelling on iron containers, fuse pockets and transport cases just a short distance from its explosive filling. Fish, crabs, anemones and bivalves were all found on the historic weapons. You could compare it with a reef ecosystem in terms of the quantity of creatures that was there, states Vedenin.

Unexpected Population Density

An mean of more than 40,000 organisms were residing on every square metre of the explosives, scientists reported in their study on the finding. The nearby seabed was much less diverse, with only eight thousand organisms on every meter squared.

It is paradoxical that things that are meant to eliminate all life are drawing so much life, states Vedenin. It's evident how nature adapts after a major disaster such as the World War II and how, in some way, marine life returns to the most risky areas.

Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats

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

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tonnes of arms were discarded off the German coast. Countless of individuals transported them in boats; some were dropped in specific locations, others just discarded at sea during transport. This is the first time researchers have recorded how ocean organisms has reacted.

Worldwide Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, retired oil and gas structures have turned into reef ecosystems
• Submerged vessels from the first world war have become homes for creatures along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan in the Pacific island

These locations become even more valuable for wildlife as the seas are increasingly denuded by fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Sunken ships and explosive disposal locations essentially act as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but virtually any kind of human activity is prohibited, says Vedenin. Therefore a lot of marine species that are typically rare or decreasing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Coming Considerations

Wherever military conflict has happened in the past 100 years, nearby oceans are usually littered with weapons, says Vedenin. Millions of tons of explosive material remain in our marine environments.

The positions of these munitions are inadequately documented, partially because of international boundaries, classified military information and the situation that records are hidden in old files. They pose an explosion and security danger, as well as risk from the persistent emission of toxic chemicals.

As Germany and additional nations begin removing these relics, experts hope to protect the ecosystems that have established around them. In the Bay of Lübeck weapons are presently being extracted.

We should replace these steel remains left from munitions with certain less dangerous, various safe materials, like possibly concrete structures, says Vedenin.

He now wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck sets a model for substituting structures after explosive extraction in other locations – because even the most damaging armaments can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.