Knowledge Portal Munitions in the Sea
Knowledge Portal Munitions in the Sea

Environment and toxicity

Munition containers that have lost their integrity are leaking chemical compounds and heavy metals, polluting seawater and sediment. Through the digestion of marine flora and fauna, these compounds of concern are introduced to the marine food web. The disposal of dangerous munition objects also involves risks, especially for marine mammals and the ecosystem as a whole.

New measurement methods allow the assessment and monitoring of environmental pathways and toxicity of munition compounds in the seas and to understand the associated risks, leading to accurate prediction of the foreseeable risk development.

KMCW’21: Environmental & Societal Impacts

Blast and noise impacts

Extreme shock waves emanate from underwater detonations. They spread almost undamped and at different velocities in water and the seabed. Impact forces and shear forces have tearing effects on the tissues of marine creatures, particularly those with air or fat in exposed organs.

The results of scientific studies on modern methods for minimising the risks of detonations during ammunition disposal demonstrate effective approaches. For example, for more than ten years, bubble curtains around detonation sites has been proven to protect porpoises in the North and Baltic Sea.

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Methodology

For the detection of chemical compounds released by ammunition into water, sediments, and biota, suitable methods have been established for sampling and analysing explosives and chemical warfare agents, as well as their transformation and decomposition products. Research is being carried out into the development of biomarkers and sensors with bioactive surfaces.

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Environmental
distribution

The contamination of sediment and seawater in the immediate environment of munitions in the sea is undisputed. However, whether it poses a threat of large-scale environmental pollution remains the subject of research. To address this, many possibilities for the distribution of relevant chemical compounds in the ecosystem must be understood. The importance of the distribution of particles, solutions, and metabolised munitions ingredients is the subject of research. Initial results indicate a potential risk.

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Environmental risks

Environmental risks from munitions in the sea are diverse, but far too abstract to derive a clear mandate from society to governments. In order to be able to open up scientific results and industry solutions for comprehensive risk assessment, relevant findings are assigned to professional criteria.

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Human seafood
consumption

Evidence of respective toxins in the marine food web suggests that seafood or processed food from the ocean may also contain heavy metals and/or munition compounds.

This raises, in particular, questions that also need to be addressed with respect to the European Union’s Marine Strategy Framework Directives Descriptor 9 regarding contaminants in seafood.

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