World War II Bombs, Torpedo Heads and Mines: How Ocean Creatures Thrives on Discarded Armaments

In the slightly salty waters off the German coast rests a wasteland of Nazi bombs, torpedo heads and naval mines. Thrown off vessels at the end of the World War II and neglected, numerous weapons have accumulated over the years. They comprise a rusting layer on the shallow, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the years, the explosive stockpile was overlooked and neglected. A increasing amount of tourists flocked to the coastal areas and calm waters for jetskiing, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Underwater, the munitions deteriorated.

We initially expected to see a lifeless zone, with no life because it was all poisoned, states a scientist.

When the first scientists went searching to see what they were affecting to the marine environment, some of us expected to see a desert, with no life because it was all contaminated, says a scientist.

What they discovered surprised them. Vedenin recalls his team members reacting with shock when the ROV first transmitted footage. It was a great moment, he notes.

Thousands of sea creatures had settled amid the explosives, developing a revitalized habitat more populous than the ocean bottom surrounding it.

This ocean community was evidence to the resilience of life. It is actually astonishing how much life we observe in places that are considered toxic and dangerous, he explains.

Over 40 starfish had piled on to one visible chunk of explosive material. They were dwelling on iron containers, fuse pockets and carrying containers just centimetres from its explosive filling. Fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all discovered on the old munitions. It resembles a coral reef in terms of the amount of animal life that was inhabiting the area, states Vedenin.

Unexpected Population Density

An mean of more than 40,000 organisms were residing on every square metre of the weapons, researchers 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 items that are meant to eliminate everything are hosting so much marine organisms, explains Vedenin. It's evident how the natural world adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, marine life establishes itself to the most risky locations.

Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats

Artificial structures such as sunken vessels, wind turbines, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can create replacements, restoring some of the destroyed marine environment. This investigation reveals that weapons could be similarly positive – the proliferation of marine organisms on those in the Bay of Lübeck is likely to be duplicated in other locations.

Between the late 1940s and the post-war period, 1.6m tonnes of munitions were disposed of off the Germany's coast. Numerous of workers loaded them in barges; some were dropped in designated areas, the remainder just thrown overboard during transport. This is the first time experts have documented how marine life has reacted.

Worldwide Examples of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, retired energy installations have become marine habitats
• Submerged vessels from the first world war have become environments for wildlife along the Potomac in Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become environment to coral off Asan beach in the Pacific island

These areas become even more crucial for marine life as the seas are increasingly depleted by fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Sunken ships and munitions areas essentially function as refuges – they are not official reserves, but almost any kind of human activity is prohibited, explains Vedenin. Therefore a many of species that are otherwise uncommon or decreasing, such as the cod fish, are thriving.

Coming Issues

Anywhere armed conflict has taken place in the last century, adjacent waters are typically containing weapons, explains Vedenin. Many millions of tonnes of dangerous substances rest in our seas.

The positions of these explosives are poorly documented, in part because of national borders, secret military information and the fact that archives are hidden in historical records. They create an explosion and safety hazard, as well as threat from the ongoing release of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and other countries embark on clearing these artifacts, scientists aim to preserve the marine communities that have formed around them. In the Lübeck Bay weapons are already being removed.

We should replace these metal carcasses originating from munitions with certain safer, various safe objects, like possibly man-made habitats, suggests Vedenin.

He currently wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck creates a precedent for substituting material after weapon clearance in other locations – because even the most harmful explosives can become scaffolding for marine organisms.