Nazi Explosives, Torpedo Heads and Mines: How Ocean Creatures Thrives on Discarded Armaments

In the brackish sea off the Germany's shoreline lies a collection of World War II explosives, torpedoes and naval mines. Dumped from boats at the conclusion of the second world war and forgotten about, thousands weapons have fused into clusters over the decades. They create a rusting layer on the shallow, silty ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was overlooked and neglected. A increasing amount of visitors flocked to the coastal areas and calm waters for water sports, kite surfing and amusement parks. Underwater, the weapons eroded.

Some of us expected to see a lifeless zone, with nothing living there because it was all toxic, says a scientist.

When the initial researchers went looking to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, some of us expected to see a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, says Andrey Vedenin.

What they observed amazed them. Vedenin remembers his team members exclaiming in amazement when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. That moment was a remarkable experience, he recalls.

Numerous of sea creatures had made their homes amid the munitions, creating a renewed ecosystem richer than the seabed nearby.

This marine city was evidence to the persistence of life. Truly remarkable how much marine organisms we discover in places that are considered toxic and dangerous, he explains.

Over 40 starfish had piled on to one accessible fragment of TNT. They were residing on iron containers, detonator compartments and carrying containers just a short distance from its explosive filling. Fish, crustaceans, anemones and bivalves were all discovered on the historic weapons. You could compare it with a coral reef in terms of the abundance of animal life that was inhabiting the area, says Vedenin.

Remarkable Population Density

An mean of more than 40,000 animals were living on every square metre of the weapons, experts documented in their study on the finding. The adjacent region was much sparser, with only 8,000 creatures on every meter squared.

It is ironic that things that are intended to kill all life are drawing so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. It's evident how nature evolves after a devastating occurrence such as the World War II and how, in some way, life establishes itself to the most risky places.

Artificial Features as Marine Environments

Artificial constructions such as shipwrecks, offshore windfarms, oil rigs and undersea pipes can provide substitutes, restoring some of the removed habitat. This study demonstrates that weapons could be similarly positive – the bloom of marine organisms on those in the Bay of Lübeck is expected to be found in different areas.

Between the late 1940s and 1948, 1.6m tonnes of arms were disposed of off the Germany's coast. Thousands of workers loaded them in vessels; a portion were dropped in specific areas, the remainder just thrown overboard during transport. This is the first time researchers have documented how ocean organisms has adapted.

Global Examples of Marine Adaptation

• In the US, retired oil and gas structures have turned into marine habitats
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become environments for wildlife along the Potomac in the state of Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan in the Pacific island

These areas become even more valuable for organisms as the oceans are increasingly depleted by fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations practically act as protected areas – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of human activity is restricted, explains Vedenin. Consequently a lot of organisms that are typically uncommon or declining, such as the cod fish, are prospering.

Future Issues

Wherever armed conflict has occurred in the past 100 years, nearby oceans are usually littered with explosives, states Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of explosive material remain in our seas.

The sites of these munitions are insufficiently recorded, in part because of sovereign limits, restricted military information and the fact that archives are hidden in historic archives. They create an explosion and safety danger, as well as risk from the persistent leakage of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and additional nations begin removing these remains, experts plan to safeguard the marine communities that have formed around them. In the Lübeck Bay munitions are presently being extracted.

It would be wise to replace these metal carcasses remaining from weapons with some safer, various safe materials, like maybe concrete structures, states Vedenin.

He now aspires that what happens in the Bay of Lübeck establishes a model for replacing material after weapon clearance in different areas – because also the most damaging explosives can become scaffolding for marine organisms.