Nazi Bombs, Torpedo Heads and Naval Mines: How Marine Life Thrives on Abandoned Weapons

In the brackish sea off the Germany's coast sits a wasteland of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and naval mines. Dumped from barges at the conclusion of the World War II and neglected, numerous explosives have become matted together over the years. They create a corroding layer on the shallow, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic Sea.

Over the decades, the explosive stockpile was overlooked and neglected. A growing number of tourists flocked to the coastal areas and calm waters for jetskiing, kite surfing and amusement parks. Beneath the surface, the weapons deteriorated.

Some of us expected to see a desert, with no organisms because it was all contaminated, explains Andrey Vedenin.

When the first scientists went searching to see what they were affecting to the marine environment, the team expected to see a barren area, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, states Andrey Vedenin.

What they discovered amazed them. Vedenin recalls his scientists shouting with surprise when the ROV first relayed pictures. That moment was a memorable occasion, he recalls.

Thousands of ocean life had settled on the explosives, forming a renewed ecosystem more populous than the seabed surrounding it.

This underwater metropolis was proof to the tenacity of marine life. It is actually astonishing how much marine organisms we find in areas that are expected to be dangerous and harmful, he states.

More than 40 starfish had piled on to one visible fragment of explosive material. They were residing on iron containers, detonator compartments and storage boxes just a short distance from its volatile core. Marine fish, crabs, sea anemones and bivalves were all observed on the old munitions. You could compare it with a coral reef in terms of the amount of creatures that was inhabiting the area, says Vedenin.

Remarkable Creature Concentration

An mean of more than 40,000 organisms were living on every square metre of the weapons, experts wrote in their research on the observation. The surrounding area was much less diverse, with only 8,000 creatures on every meter squared.

It is paradoxical that things that are meant to eliminate everything are attracting so much life, says Vedenin. You can see how nature adapts after a catastrophic event such as the World War II and how, in some way, life returns to the most hazardous areas.

Man-made Features as Ocean Environments

Man-made structures such as sunken vessels, wind turbines, oil rigs and undersea pipes can create replacements, replacing some of the removed marine environment. This research reveals that munitions could be equally beneficial – the bloom of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is expected to be duplicated in different areas.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6 million tonnes of arms were dumped off the Germany's coast. Countless of workers loaded them in boats; some were deposited in allocated sites, the remainder just dumped en route. This is the first time researchers have documented how ocean organisms has reacted.

Global Instances of Ocean Transformation

• In the United States, retired drilling platforms have become coral reefs
• Sunken ships from the first world war have become habitats for marine life along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan in the Pacific island

These locations become even more important for organisms as the oceans are increasingly denuded by fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Sunken ships and explosive disposal locations practically act as sanctuaries – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is banned, explains Vedenin. As a result a lot of species that are usually uncommon or declining, such as the cod fish, are prospering.

Coming Issues

Wherever armed conflict has taken place in the recent history, nearby oceans are usually containing munitions, says Vedenin. Millions of tons of explosive material remain in our marine environments.

The sites of these weapons are poorly documented, in part because of national borders, classified defense data and the fact that records are buried in historic archives. They pose an explosion and security danger, as well as threat from the ongoing leakage of toxic chemicals.

As Germany and additional nations embark on removing these relics, scientists aim to safeguard the marine communities that have developed around them. In the Bay of Lübeck munitions are currently being cleared.

We should substitute these metal carcasses remaining from weapons with some safer, various harmless structures, like maybe concrete structures, says Vedenin.

He now hopes that what happens in Lübeck creates a example for replacing habitats after munitions removal in different areas – because even the most damaging weaponry can become framework for marine organisms.