Knowledge Portal Munitions in the SeaMarine transportation processes are drivers of the distribution of munition compounds in the marine environment. Simulations are available to model the currents, but we need to understand the behaviour of munition compounds in seawater to feed them meaningfully into mathematical models.
Oceanographic modelling helps identify and prioritise pollutant sources for remediation to reduce primary inputs. Recent efforts have begun incorporating munition compounds in oceanographic models at high spatial resolution and with vertically adaptive coordinates, although the widespread presence of munitions in some systems makes it challenging to link specific munition compounds sources to plumes of dissolved munition compounds in the water column. Dissolution of solid explosives controls the source strength of munition compounds release into coastal waters, a critical parameter of oceanographic models, and work to quantify the rate of dissolution under natural conditions is in its early stages. Current oceanographic modelling of, e.g., TNT release through dissolution and degradation by microbes, produces trends that match reasonably well with field data. Ongoing efforts aim to improve model performance and extend it to other munition-related chemicals.