Cleaning up the Baltic: New project aims to tackle dangerous shipwrecks

Scientific and research institutions from Poland, Lithuania, Germany, and Sweden are implementing the "Baltwreck" project. The project aims to reduce pollution in the Baltic Sea by removing shipwreck remnants, such as ammunition and fuel, from the sea.

The creators of "Baltwreck" highlight that the bottom of the Baltic Sea conceals around 20,000 known shipwrecks, both military and civilian. It is estimated that about 10 percent of them are sources of pollution, releasing fuel or remnants of submerged ammunition into the sea waters. The project description emphasizes that despite over 80 years since the end of World War II, some rusted wrecks still leak dangerous fuel, such as carcinogenic pyrolysis oil. Other remnants are close to decomposition and require thorough monitoring.

The scientists aim to develop and implement effective methods of managing wrecks to prevent massive chemical contamination of the sea. The project plans include developing advanced technologies for detecting dangerous substances and removing fuel, ammunition, and explosives from the wrecks. An analysis of the impact of submerged ammunition on marine ecosystems will also be conducted.

"Baltwreck" is coordinated by the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The project consortium includes 14 partners from Lithuania, Germany, Sweden, and Poland, including the Faculty of Physics, Astronomy, and Applied Computer Science of the Jagiellonian University. Under Dr. Michał Silarski's direction, the JU team is tasked with testing new methods for detecting hazardous materials in the sea.

The Jagiellonian University has announced that Dr. Michał Silarski from the Department of Experimental Particle Physics and its Applications at the Institute of Physics JU is the author of the project "Non-invasive sensor for detecting hazardous materials in the aquatic environment," which was the highest-rated grant by the Foundation for Polish Science in the FIRST TEAM programme.

This device's operation principle is based on the phenomenon of neutron activation of substances and the measurement of characteristic gamma-ray spectra generated after irradiating the substance with a neutron beam. As explained by the university in a communiqué, unlike commonly used methods, the proposed solution allows for remote determination of the chemical composition of a suspicious object without endangering human life and health.

The "Baltwreck" project, whose full name is "Prevention of massive chemical pollution of marine waters from leaking wrecks and ammunition/weapon storage sites in the southern Baltic," began on 1 July and will last three years. The total project budget is 3.83 million euros, of which 3.06 million euros come from the European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg South Baltic Programme.