Published October 14, 2022 | Version v1
Conference paper Open

North Sea Wrecks - An interdisciplinary approach towards understanding the risks posed by wrecks containing munitions in the North Sea

Creators

  • 1. German Maritime Museum – Leibniz Institute for Maritime History, Hans-Scharoun-Platz 1, 27568 Bremerhaven, Germany
  • 2. Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany
  • 3. Institute of Toxicology and Pharmacology for Natural Scientists, University Medical School Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Brunswiker Str. 10, 24105 Kiel, Germany
  • 4. German Aeorospace Center, Institute for the Protection of Maritime Infrastructures, Maritime Security Technologies Fischkai 1, Bremerhaven, Germany
  • 5. North.io GmbH – Ammunition Cadastre Sea, Einsteinstr. 1, 24118, Kiel, Germany
  • 6. Salvage and Marine Operations, Ministry of Defence Abbey Wood, Bristol, BS34 8JH, United Kingdom
  • 7. Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), Wandelaarkaai 7, 8400 Oostende, Belgium
  • 8. Expert Panel Munition at Sea & Consultant for the State Ministry for Energy Transition, Climate Protection, Environment and Nature of Schleswig Holstein, Kiel, Germany

Description

Shipwrecks and dumped munitions continue to be a major hazard in the North Sea. Research within the EU Interreg project North Sea Wrecks (NSW), in cooperation with the German Aerospace Agency, Institute for the Protection of Maritime Infrastructures (DLR), is generating new insights into the status of wrecks, the potential leakage of pollutants from munitions and the effects of these pollutants on exposed marine organisms in the North Sea. Historical documents are compared to models and visual inspections of the wreck, and samples of water, sediment and organisms are analysed. Combining the results of these different fields of research gives a better understanding of the environmental risks associated with these wrecks. This process is shown below using the case study of the German light cruiser SMS MAINZ, which sank in 1914.

Notes

The research work was co-funded by the European Union (European Regional Development Fund) under the North Sea Interreg Programme 2014-2020. Research as conducted, within the framework of the project "North Sea Wrecks - An Opportunity for Blue Growth: Healthy Environment, Shipping, Energy Production and –transmission (NSW).

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