SciTechDaily.com
Scientists have discovered that an 80-year-old historic shipwreck from World War II is still influencing the microbiology and geochemistry of the ocean floor where it rests. The wreck is leaking pollutants, including explosives and heavy metals into the sediment of the North Sea. The seabed of the North Sea is covered in thousands of ship and aircraft wrecks, warfare agents, and millions of tons of conventional munition such as shells and bombs.
“The general public is often quite interested in shipwrecks because of their historical value, but the potential environmental impact of these wrecks is often overlooked,” said PhD candidate Josefien Van Landuyt, of Ghent University. “While wrecks can function as artificial reefs and have tremendous human story-telling value, we should not forget that they can be dangerous human-made objects which were unintentionally introduced into a natural environment,” Van Landuyt continued. “Today, new shipwrecks are removed for this exact reason.”