World War II Bombs, Torpedo Heads and Mines: The Way Marine Life Flourishes on Dumped Weapons

In the slightly salty waters off the German coast sits a wasteland of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Dumped from boats at the conclusion of the second world war and forgotten about, numerous explosives have accumulated over the decades. They comprise a decaying blanket on the low-depth, muddy ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western tip of the Baltic.

Over the years, the wartime weapons was ignored and forgotten about. A growing number of tourists flocked to the coastal areas and calm waters for water sports, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Beneath the surface, the munitions decayed.

Some of us anticipated to see a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, states a scientist.

When the initial researchers went looking to see what they were affecting to the ecosystem, researchers anticipated finding a barren area, with no life because it was all poisoned, explains a scientist.

What they found amazed them. Vedenin recalls his scientists shouting with surprise when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. That moment was a great moment, he notes.

Thousands of ocean life had settled among the weapons, creating a regenerated marine community denser than the ocean bottom nearby.

This marine city was proof to the resilience of marine life. It is actually remarkable how much marine organisms we observe in locations that are supposed to be toxic and dangerous, he explains.

Over 40 sea stars had piled on to one visible chunk of explosive material. They were residing on metal shells, ignition chambers and transport cases just a short distance from its explosive filling. Fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all discovered on the old munitions. You could compare it with a marine reef in terms of the amount of fauna that was inhabiting the area, says Vedenin.

Surprising Population Density

An average of more than 40,000 creatures were dwelling on every square metre of the munitions, researchers reported in their research on the finding. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only eight thousand creatures on every square metre.

It is ironic that items that are designed to destroy everything are hosting so much life, says Vedenin. One can observe how the natural world adapts after a catastrophic event such as the World War II and how, in some way, life establishes itself to the most dangerous areas.

Man-made Features as Marine Environments

Artificial constructions such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can provide alternatives, replacing some of the lost marine environment. This study shows that explosives could be comparably beneficial – the explosion of marine organisms on those in the Lübeck Bay is probable to be duplicated elsewhere.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6 million tons of arms were disposed of off the Germany's coast. Numerous of people loaded them in vessels; some were placed in allocated locations, others just dumped en route. This is the first time experts have documented how ocean organisms has adapted.

Worldwide Examples of Marine Transformation

• In the US, retired energy installations have become marine habitats
• Shipwrecks from the World War I have become habitats for creatures along the Potomac River in Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become home to coral off Asan beach in Guam

These locations become even more valuable for wildlife as the marine environments are increasingly stripped by commercial fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and weapons dump sites practically act as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of human activity is restricted, says Vedenin. Therefore a lot of marine species that are otherwise uncommon or declining, such as the Baltic cod, are prospering.

Future Factors

Anywhere warfare has occurred in the past 100 years, nearby oceans are often containing explosives, explains Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of volatile compounds remain in our oceans.

The positions of these explosives are insufficiently mapped, partially because of national borders, restricted armed forces records and the fact that archives are buried in old files. They pose an detonation and safety danger, as well as danger from the continuous leakage of hazardous substances.

As the German government and different states embark on removing these remains, scientists aim to protect the ecosystems that have formed around them. In the Bay of Lübeck weapons are currently being extracted.

We should replace these metal carcasses left from munitions with certain more secure, various harmless materials, like perhaps man-made habitats, states Vedenin.

He presently wishes that what transpires in the Bay of Lübeck sets a model for replacing habitats after munitions removal in different areas – because even the most damaging weaponry can become foundation for ocean ecosystems.