World War II Munitions, Torpedo Heads and Naval Mines: How Ocean Creatures Thrives on Abandoned Weapons
In the slightly salty waters off the Germany's coast lies a wasteland of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and naval mines. Discarded from vessels at the end of the World War II and left behind, numerous munitions have accumulated over the years. They comprise a corroding blanket on the shallow, silty ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western tip of the Baltic.
Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and forgotten about. A increasing amount of visitors came to the sandy beaches and calm waters for water sports, kiteboarding and entertainment venues. Beneath the surface, the munitions deteriorated.
Researchers expected to see a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all poisoned, states a scientist.
When the first scientists went searching to see what they were doing to the marine environment, the team thought they would find a lifeless zone, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, explains a scientist.
What they observed astonished them. Vedenin recalls his team members reacting with shock when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. It was a remarkable experience, he notes.
Countless of marine animals had settled amid the weapons, forming a renewed habitat richer than the ocean bottom surrounding it.
This underwater metropolis was evidence to the resilience of life. Truly remarkable how much marine organisms we observe in areas that are considered toxic and dangerous, he states.
Over 40 starfish had piled on to one exposed fragment of TNT. They were residing on metal shells, fuse pockets and carrying containers just centimetres from its explosive filling. Marine fish, crabs, sea anemones and mussels were all found on the discarded explosives. It resembles a marine reef in terms of the abundance of animal life that was inhabiting the area, states Vedenin.
Remarkable Creature Concentration
An mean of more than 40,000 animals were dwelling on every square metre of the weapons, scientists reported in their research on the finding. The surrounding area was much poorer in life, with only 8,000 creatures on every meter squared.
It is ironic that objects that are designed to kill everything are hosting so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. You can see how the natural world adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, marine life returns to the most risky areas.
Artificial Structures as Marine Habitats
Man-made features such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, oil rigs and undersea pipes can provide substitutes, restoring some of the removed habitat. This research demonstrates that munitions could be comparably positive – the explosion of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be repeated in other locations.
Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tons of arms were disposed of off the German coast. Thousands of individuals loaded them in vessels; some were dropped in designated areas, others just discarded at sea during transport. This is the initial instance scientists have recorded how ocean organisms has responded.
Worldwide Instances of Ocean Transformation
- In the US, retired drilling platforms have transformed into marine habitats
- Sunken ships from the first world war have become homes for wildlife along the Potomac in Maryland
- Military vehicle parts that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan beach in Guam
These locations become even more valuable for marine life as the oceans are increasingly denuded by commercial fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Sunken ships and explosive disposal locations practically act as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is restricted, says Vedenin. As a result a many of marine species that are usually scarce or declining, such as the Baltic cod, are prospering.
Coming Considerations
Wherever military conflict has happened in the past 100 years, surrounding seas are typically containing weapons, explains Vedenin. Many millions of tons of dangerous substances rest in our seas.
The positions of these explosives are insufficiently documented, partly because of sovereign limits, classified armed forces records and the situation that records are stored in old files. They pose an detonation and safety danger, as well as threat from the continuous leakage of poisonous compounds.
As Germany and additional nations begin removing these artifacts, researchers hope to preserve the habitats that have formed in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay munitions are presently being extracted.
We should replace these steel remains originating from weapons with certain less dangerous, various safe materials, like possibly man-made habitats, states Vedenin.
He currently wishes that what transpires in the Bay of Lübeck creates a precedent for replacing material after munitions removal elsewhere – because even the most destructive weaponry can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.
