After the Second World War, the North Sea became the final destination for a large number of ships. At the bottom of the sea are the remains of thousands of ships and planes. Scientists have studied the effects of these residues.
According to the article published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, these ships continue to leak harmful substances that pollute the seafloor 80 years after sinking. These include heavy metals and explosives. These substances also harm the marine biology around them.
World War II continues to strike the seas
Josefien Van Landuyt, a researcher from Ghent University, said in a statement that people show interest in shipwrecks because of their historical value, but the effects of these structures on the sea are often ignored. It is estimated that the ships sunk in the 1st and 2nd World Wars carried between 2.5 million tons and 20.4 million tons of petroleum products.
Although the skeletons of sunken ships act as artificial reefs, positively impacting life on the seabed, the ships involved in this research are warships. Naturally, they contain a lot of oil, petroleum products, explosives and poisonous substances. According to Van Landuyt’s research, shipwrecks off the coast of Belgium also cause the deterioration of local microbial structures.
According to the investigation, the leaks emanating from the ship spread out in waves, with the ship in the center. The highest concentration of hazardous waste was found in the area where the ship was located. In other words, ships pollute their surroundings as well as their surroundings. Even if we do not know where the ship is, we can be affected by environmental pollution.
In addition, pollution from ships also disrupts the microbiome. Bacteria appear at a concentration that should not normally be present. In addition, some bacteria that are not normally found gather around the ship’s remains.
43189
