Nazi Bombs, Torpedoes and Mines: The Way Marine Life Thrives on Discarded Armaments

In the brackish waters off the Germany's shoreline sits a collection of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Discarded from vessels at the end of the second world war and neglected, countless explosives have become matted together over the years. They create a corroding blanket on the shallow, silty seafloor of the Lübeck Bay in the western tip of the Baltic Sea.

Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was overlooked and neglected. A increasing amount of visitors traveled to the coastal areas and calm waters for jetskiing, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Underwater, the weapons eroded.

Some of us thought to see a barren area, with no life because it was all contaminated, says a scientist.

When the team went searching to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, some of us anticipated finding a desert, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, states a scientist.

What they discovered amazed them. Vedenin remembers his scientists exclaiming in amazement when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. This was a memorable occasion, he notes.

Numerous of ocean life had established habitats among the munitions, forming a regenerated habitat more populous than the sea floor nearby.

This underwater metropolis was proof to the persistence of marine life. Truly remarkable how much marine organisms we find in locations that are expected to be dangerous and harmful, he states.

Over 40 sea stars had clustered on to one visible fragment of TNT. They were residing on steel casings, detonator compartments and storage boxes just centimetres from its explosive filling. Marine fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all observed on the historic weapons. You could compare it with a marine reef in terms of the amount of fauna that was there, says Vedenin.

Surprising Population Density

An average of more than 40,000 creatures were living on every meter squared of the munitions, experts documented in their paper on the observation. The nearby seabed was much sparser, with only 8,000 organisms on every meter squared.

It is paradoxical that things that are designed to eliminate all life are hosting so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. One can observe how nature adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, marine life returns to the most hazardous areas.

Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats

Man-made structures such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can offer substitutes, restoring some of the removed marine environment. This study shows that munitions could be similarly advantageous – the bloom of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is probable to be duplicated in different areas.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6 million tonnes of munitions were discarded off the Germany's shoreline. Numerous of people transported them in vessels; a portion were deposited in specific areas, others just dumped during transport. This is the initial instance experts have documented how marine life has responded.

Worldwide Examples of Marine Transformation

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

These areas become even more valuable for wildlife as the seas are increasingly denuded by fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations essentially serve as protected areas – they are not national parks, but almost any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is restricted, states Vedenin. Consequently a lot of species that are otherwise uncommon or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are thriving.

Coming Factors

Wherever military conflict has taken place in the last century, adjacent waters are often littered with weapons, says Vedenin. Millions of tons of volatile compounds lie in our marine environments.

The locations of these explosives are poorly mapped, partly because of national borders, classified defense data and the reality that archives are buried in old files. They pose an detonation and security risk, as well as threat from the ongoing release of hazardous substances.

As Germany and other countries embark on extracting these artifacts, experts aim to safeguard the habitats that have developed in their vicinity. In the Bay of Lübeck explosives are currently being cleared.

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

He now wishes that what happens in the Bay of Lübeck sets a precedent for replacing habitats after explosive extraction in different areas – because even the most destructive armaments can become framework for ocean ecosystems.