Nazi Munitions, Torpedoes and Naval Mines: How Ocean Creatures Flourishes on Abandoned Armaments

In the slightly salty sea off the German coast lies a collection of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Dumped from vessels at the conclusion of the World War II and neglected, thousands munitions have accumulated over the years. They form a corroding blanket on the low-depth, silty seafloor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic.

Over the decades, the wartime weapons was ignored and forgotten about. A increasing amount of tourists flocked to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for water sports, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the weapons decayed.

We initially expected to see a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all toxic, explains a scientist.

When the team went searching to see what they were affecting to the ecosystem, some of us anticipated finding a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, explains the lead researcher.

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

Countless of marine animals had established habitats amid the explosives, creating a regenerated marine community denser than the seabed surrounding it.

This underwater metropolis was testament to the resilience of life. Indeed remarkable how much life we observe in places that are supposed to be toxic and harmful, he states.

Over 40 sea stars had piled on to one accessible fragment of explosive material. They were dwelling on iron containers, fuse pockets and carrying containers just centimetres from its volatile core. Marine fish, crustaceans, anemones and bivalves were all observed on the discarded explosives. It resembles a reef ecosystem in terms of the abundance of creatures that was there, states Vedenin.

Unexpected Population Density

An mean of more than 40,000 creatures were residing on every square metre of the weapons, scientists reported in their study on the discovery. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only 8,000 organisms on every square metre.

It is paradoxical that things that are designed to kill all life are hosting so much life, explains Vedenin. One can observe how nature evolves after a major disaster such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, life returns to the most risky places.

Artificial Structures as Marine Habitats

Man-made structures such as shipwrecks, offshore windfarms, drilling platforms and pipelines can offer alternatives, replacing some of the removed habitat. This investigation shows that weapons could be comparably beneficial – the bloom of marine organisms on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be duplicated elsewhere.

Between the late 1940s and 1948, 1.6m tonnes of arms were discarded off the Germany's shoreline. Countless of individuals placed them in barges; a portion were dropped in allocated locations, others just discarded at sea while traveling. This is the initial instance researchers have documented how marine life has adapted.

Worldwide Examples of Marine Adaptation

• In the US, decommissioned oil and gas structures have become reef ecosystems
• Shipwrecks from the first world war have become environments for creatures along the Potomac in the state of Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan beach in Guam

These places become even more valuable for marine life as the seas are increasingly depleted by fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Sunken ships and munitions areas effectively function as sanctuaries – they are not official reserves, but almost any kind of human activity is prohibited, says Vedenin. Therefore a lot of species that are otherwise scarce or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Coming Considerations

Anywhere armed conflict has taken place in the last century, adjacent waters are usually littered with munitions, explains Vedenin. Millions of tons of volatile compounds lie in our oceans.

The locations of these weapons are inadequately mapped, partially because of national borders, secret armed forces records and the situation that archives are buried in historical records. They pose an explosion and security risk, as well as risk from the continuous release of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and different states embark on extracting these remains, researchers hope to protect the marine communities that have established nearby. In the Bay of Lübeck explosives are already being cleared.

Researchers recommend replace these iron structures left from weapons with some safer, some safe objects, like maybe concrete structures, suggests Vedenin.

He now hopes that what occurs in Lübeck establishes a example for substituting material after weapon clearance in other locations – because also the most destructive weaponry can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.