Nazi Munitions, Torpedo Heads and Naval Mines: The Way Ocean Creatures Thrives on Discarded Armaments

In the brackish waters off the Germany's coast rests a graveyard of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and mines. Thrown off vessels at the end of the World War II and left behind, countless weapons have become matted together over the decades. They create a corroding carpet on the shallow, silty ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic.

Over the years, the wartime weapons was overlooked and forgotten about. A increasing amount of visitors traveled to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Beneath the surface, the weapons decayed.

Researchers thought to see a desert, with nothing living there because it was all toxic, explains the lead researcher.

When the first scientists went investigating to see what they were affecting to the marine environment, researchers expected to see a barren area, with nothing living there because it was all contaminated, states a scientist.

What they discovered amazed them. Vedenin recalls his colleagues shouting with surprise when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. This was a great moment, he recalls.

Thousands of marine animals had settled amid the munitions, developing a revitalized habitat more populous than the ocean bottom surrounding it.

This ocean community was testament to the tenacity of marine life. Truly surprising how much life we observe in locations that are supposed to be toxic and risky, he says.

More than 40 starfish had clustered on to one accessible chunk of TNT. They were dwelling on steel casings, detonator compartments and transport cases just a short distance from its volatile core. Fish, crabs, anemones and bivalves were all discovered on the discarded explosives. It's similar to a coral reef in terms of the amount of fauna that was there, says Vedenin.

Surprising Population Density

An mean of more than 40,000 organisms were living on every square metre of the munitions, scientists reported in their study on the finding. The nearby seabed was much less diverse, with only 8,000 creatures on every meter squared.

It is surprising that things that are intended to eliminate everything are hosting so much marine organisms, explains Vedenin. One can observe how the natural world adapts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in some way, marine life returns to the most hazardous places.

Man-made Features as Marine Environments

Man-made features such as sunken vessels, offshore windfarms, oil rigs and pipelines can offer substitutes, restoring some of the destroyed habitat. This investigation shows that weapons could be similarly positive – the proliferation of marine organisms on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be repeated in different areas.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tonnes of arms were dumped off the Germany's coast. Thousands of people loaded them in vessels; some were dropped in allocated areas, the remainder just thrown overboard during transport. This is the first time experts have documented how marine life has reacted.

Global Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, decommissioned energy installations have turned into coral reefs
• Sunken ships from the World War I have become habitats for creatures along the Potomac in the state of Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become environment to reef-building organisms off Asan in Guam

These places become even more valuable for wildlife as the marine environments are increasingly depleted by commercial fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Sunken ships and munitions areas essentially function as sanctuaries – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of human activity is prohibited, states Vedenin. As a result a many of organisms that are usually uncommon or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Coming Factors

Anywhere military conflict has happened in the past 100 years, surrounding seas are typically containing weapons, says Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of volatile compounds remain in our marine environments.

The locations of these weapons are poorly documented, partly because of national borders, restricted armed forces records and the fact that records are buried in old files. They create an explosion and security hazard, as well as threat from the persistent emission of poisonous compounds.

As Germany and different states embark on clearing these artifacts, experts hope to safeguard the habitats that have formed in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay explosives are currently being cleared.

Researchers recommend substitute these iron structures left from munitions with some less dangerous, various non-dangerous materials, like possibly concrete structures, says Vedenin.

He currently aspires that what transpires in Lübeck sets a example for replacing habitats after explosive extraction in other locations – because including the most damaging weaponry can become framework for ocean ecosystems.