World War II Munitions, Torpedoes and Naval Mines: How Marine Life Thrives on Abandoned Weapons

In the brackish sea off the Germany's shoreline lies a collection of World War II explosives, torpedoes and mines. Discarded from barges at the end of the second world war and left behind, countless weapons have fused into clusters over the years. They form a decaying blanket on the shallow, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic.

Over the decades, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and neglected. A growing number of tourists traveled to the sandy beaches and calm waters for water sports, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Underwater, the weapons eroded.

We initially thought to see a desert, with no life because it was all toxic, states the lead researcher.

When the first scientists went searching to see what they were affecting to the ecosystem, some of us expected to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, says Andrey Vedenin.

What they discovered surprised them. Vedenin recounts his scientists reacting with shock when the underwater vehicle first relayed pictures. It was a great moment, he notes.

Countless of sea creatures had settled amid the munitions, creating a revitalized habitat more populous than the seabed surrounding it.

This ocean community was testament to the tenacity of life. Truly astonishing how much life we find in areas that are supposed to be hazardous and risky, he states.

More than 40 sea stars had clustered on to one accessible piece of explosive material. They were dwelling on iron containers, ignition chambers and storage boxes just centimetres from its volatile core. Marine fish, crabs, sea anemones and bivalves were all discovered on the historic weapons. It's similar to a coral reef in terms of the abundance of animal life that was there, notes Vedenin.

Remarkable Population Density

An average of more than forty thousand animals were living on every square metre of the explosives, researchers wrote in their study on the finding. The nearby seabed was much less diverse, with only 8,000 organisms on every square metre.

It is paradoxical that objects that are designed to destroy all life are drawing so much life, states Vedenin. It's evident how nature adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, life finds its way to the most dangerous places.

Artificial Features as Marine Environments

Man-made features such as shipwrecks, offshore windfarms, oil rigs and undersea pipes can create replacements, restoring some of the destroyed marine environment. This investigation reveals that weapons could be equally beneficial – the proliferation of marine organisms on those in the Bay of Lübeck is probable to be repeated in different areas.

Between the late 1940s and 1948, 1.6m tons of weapons were dumped off the German shoreline. Countless of people loaded them in vessels; some were placed in designated sites, the remainder just thrown overboard en route. This is the initial instance scientists have recorded how marine life has adapted.

Global Examples of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, decommissioned oil and gas structures have transformed into coral reefs
• Submerged vessels from the first world war have become environments for marine life along the Potomac in Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become home to coral off Asan beach in the Pacific island

These locations become even more crucial for marine life as the oceans are increasingly depleted by fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Sunken ships and weapons dump sites practically serve as refuges – they are not national parks, but almost any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, explains Vedenin. Consequently a many of species that are typically rare or decreasing, such as the Baltic cod, are flourishing.

Coming Considerations

Anywhere warfare has taken place in the recent history, adjacent waters are usually strewn with weapons, states Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of dangerous substances lie in our marine environments.

The positions of these munitions are poorly mapped, partially because of international boundaries, secret defense data and the reality that documents are hidden in historical records. They present an detonation and security hazard, as well as danger from the persistent leakage of toxic chemicals.

As Germany and different states start clearing these relics, scientists aim to safeguard the ecosystems that have developed around them. In the Bay of Lübeck explosives are already being cleared.

Researchers recommend substitute these steel remains left from weapons with certain less dangerous, some non-dangerous structures, like possibly artificial reefs, suggests Vedenin.

He presently wishes that what transpires in the Bay of Lübeck sets a example for substituting habitats after weapon clearance in other locations – because also the most harmful explosives can become framework for ocean ecosystems.