Germany plans to extract 1.6 million tonnes of munitions from the bottom of the Baltic Sea

Media across the Oder have reported that Germany is planning to excavate 1.6 million tonnes of World War I and World War II munitions from the bottom of the Baltic Sea.

Clearing the Baltic Sea of war debris is becoming an increasingly popular topic. The Minister of Environment in the government of Schleswig-Holstein, Jan Philipp Albrecht, said that he hopes that the whole operation can start in 2023. weapons and ammunition from the Second World WarThe issue of the seabed in the Baltic Sea has been an open secret for years. In recent years, the topic has been increasingly in the media, but concrete actions and solutions have been lacking.

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The change is the result of an agreement reached by the German parties in the SPD, Greens and FDP coalition. Under the agreement, Germany plans to take action in the Baltic and North Sea area. Therefore, a special programme has been launched and funding has been established from the federal state fund for medium- and long-term reconstruction.

This is very good news for environmental protection in the North Sea and Baltic Sea. Schleswig-Holstein is prepared to contribute to the immediate programme for the recovery and destruction of old munitions. I will work to ensure that all federal states commit to supporting the emergency programme – emphasised Jan Philipp Albrecht.

The aim is to start recovering old weapons and ammunition in a first pilot project off the coast of Schleswig-Holstein. Activities under this project are to start by 2023 at the latest.

In the German part of the North Sea and Baltic Sea there is approximately 1.6 million tonnes of munitions from the First and Second World Wars. All of this has begun to degrade over the years, which in turn causes toxic and poisonous compounds to be released into the sea. Forecasts are not optimistic, and in extreme cases assume an ecological disaster of enormous proportions.

What’s next?

In the countries bordering the Baltic Sea, including Poland, voices are being raised more and more frequently about dangerous substances sunk to the bottom of the sea. Unfortunately, so far this has not been followed by any sensible action that could help solve the problem. And there is less and less time…

Photo: Jana Ulrich/Forschungstauchzentrum CAU Kiel/dpa