Nazi Explosives, Torpedoes and Mines: The Way Ocean Creatures Prosper on Abandoned Weapons

In the slightly salty waters off the German coast rests a wasteland of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Discarded from boats at the end of the World War II and neglected, thousands explosives have fused into clusters over the years. They create a decaying carpet on the low-depth, muddy ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western tip of the Baltic.

Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and forgotten about. A increasing amount of visitors came to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Below the waves, the munitions decayed.

We initially thought to see a lifeless zone, with nothing living there because it was all contaminated, says a scientist.

When the first scientists went looking to see what they were affecting to the ecosystem, the team thought they would find a barren area, with nothing living there because it was all toxic, says a scientist.

What they observed amazed them. Vedenin recounts his team members exclaiming in amazement when the ROV first transmitted footage. That moment was a great moment, he recalls.

Countless of marine animals had settled among the munitions, forming a revitalized marine community richer than the ocean bottom nearby.

This ocean community was proof to the tenacity of marine life. Indeed surprising how much marine organisms we discover in places that are considered hazardous and risky, he explains.

Over 40 starfish had piled on to one exposed chunk of explosive material. They were dwelling on iron containers, fuse pockets and transport cases just centimetres from its explosive filling. Fish, crabs, sea anemones and mussels were all discovered on the historic weapons. It's similar to a reef ecosystem in terms of the quantity of fauna that was inhabiting the area, states Vedenin.

Remarkable Creature Concentration

An average of more than 40,000 animals were living on every meter squared of the munitions, scientists reported in their paper on the discovery. The adjacent region was much poorer in life, with only eight thousand creatures on every meter squared.

It is surprising that objects that are designed to eliminate all life are drawing so much marine organisms, says Vedenin. You can see how nature evolves after a major disaster such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, marine life returns to the most dangerous areas.

Artificial Structures as Ocean Environments

Man-made structures such as sunken vessels, wind turbines, oil rigs and undersea pipes can offer replacements, replacing some of the removed marine environment. This research demonstrates that weapons could be equally advantageous – the bloom of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be found in other locations.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6 million tons of munitions were discarded off the German shoreline. Thousands of individuals transported them in vessels; a portion were placed in designated sites, others just discarded at sea during transport. This is the initial instance experts have documented how ocean organisms has responded.

Worldwide Examples of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, decommissioned oil and gas structures have turned into coral reefs
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become environments for marine life along the Potomac River in Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan in the Pacific island

These places become even more valuable for organisms as the marine environments are increasingly denuded by commercial fishing, bottom trawling and anchoring. Shipwrecks and weapons dump sites essentially act as sanctuaries – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is banned, says Vedenin. As a result a lot of species that are otherwise rare or decreasing, such as the Baltic cod, are prospering.

Future Issues

Wherever military conflict has taken place in the past 100 years, adjacent waters are typically strewn with weapons, says Vedenin. Many millions of tons of explosive material remain in our oceans.

The locations of these munitions are poorly documented, partially because of international boundaries, secret defense data and the fact that archives are stored in old files. They create an explosion and safety danger, as well as danger from the persistent release of toxic chemicals.

As the German government and different states begin clearing these relics, experts aim to safeguard the habitats that have formed in their vicinity. In the Bay of Lübeck munitions are currently being removed.

It would be wise to replace these steel remains left from munitions with some safer, some safe structures, like maybe man-made habitats, states Vedenin.

He currently wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck establishes a example for substituting habitats after explosive extraction in different areas – because even the most harmful explosives can become framework for marine organisms.