Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission Response Working Group RESPONSE 28-2020 online meeting, 3-5 November 2020 Document title Draft Submerged Assessment Code 9-1 Category DEC Agenda Item 9 - Wrecks and other submerged hazardous objects Submission date 2.10.2020 Submitted by Secretariat Reference Background RESPONSE 27-2020 considered the draft HELCOM Thematic Assessment on Hazardous Submerged Objects in the Baltic Sea (Submerged Assessment), noting that SUBMERGED 8-2020 had agreed that in finalizing the Submerged Assessment for approval by RESPONSE 28-2020, it should be in for form of two separate volumes (Volume 1: warfare materials and Volume 2: wrecks). As agreed by SUBMERGED 7-2018 the development of the Submerged Assessment has been undertaken by two drafting groups, one on warfare materials (co-chaired by Mr. Jens Sternheim (Germany) and Mr. Jacek Bełdowski (Poland)) and one on wrecks (chaired by Mr. Jorma Rytkönen (Finland)). The work has continued since RESPONSE 27-2020 and an updated draft Volume 1 on warfare materials, developed by authors from a number of countries, is set out in the annex to this document for consideration by the Meeting. It is to be noted that the Submerged Expert Group has not been able to finalize the draft fully by the time of submission of this document. Chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5 are currently in a state that only requires final editing to take place. Chapters 1 (Introduction) and 6 (conclusion) are still subject to consideration within the Submerged Expert Group. Chapter 6 is however partially aligned with the proposed new action for the updated Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) proposal of the SUBMEBERD group, which was supported during the HELCOM BSAP UP workshop on hazardous substances and litter for the consideration of proposed new actions (BSAP UP WS-HZ-2020) in August 2020. Chapter 5 describes national and international efforts and authorities addressing the issue of warfare materials in the Baltic Sea. Contracting Parties are asked to provide additional input for Chapter 5 for their countries. Information is especially needed from Russia and Latvia. The draft for Volume 2 on wrecks is not ready for approval at this stage. A commenting form is attached to this document as a separate Excel file. Contracting Parties and observers are encouraged to use this form to communicate concerns regarding the content of the Assessment to the drafting groups. The comments will help streamline the process of finding common ground on the controversial topics. Comments and input needed for finalizing Volume 1 of the Submerged Assessment, using the commenting form, are requested to be sent to [email protected] as soon as possible. Comments received by the final submission deadline 27 October 2020 will be submitted by the Secretariat to RESPONSE 28-2020 as a separate commenting document for consideration together with the present document. A separate request for comments, input and agreement with the draft has been sent out to the contacts of the Submerged Expert Group. Page 1 of 2 RESPONSE 28-2020, 9-1 The publication of the Submerged Assessment should be approved by HOD 59-2020 (7-8 December 2020) and the decision document submission deadline for that Meeting is 15 November 2020. Therefore RESPONSE 28-2020 is invited to approve the draft Submerged Assessment, Volume 1 on warfare materials in principle, after which the draft will be submitted to HOD-59-2020. If further comments and input, in particular from the drafting team of the Submerged Expert Group, are still received after RESPONSE 28-2020, an updated draft will be circulated for approval by the Response Working Group by correspondence to enable the final draft to be submitted to HOD 59-2020 before the final submission deadline on 30 November 2020. Action requested The Meeting is invited to: 1. consider the attached version of the draft Submerged Assessment; 2. review the draft Submerged Assessment and use the attached commenting form to provide comments on the document; 3. note that work still remains to be done on a number of Chapters; 4. note that the content of the report has been peer reviewed and does therefore not only reflect the opinion of the respective authors and the SUBMERGED group but also of the reviewers; 5. note that changes (as compared to the version that was considered by RESPONSE 27-2020) are present throughout the entire document; 6. provide additional input for Chapter 5 on national and international efforts and activities; 7. agree with the proposed way forward in finalizing and approving the draft Submerged Assessment, Volume 1, with a view to its final approval for publication by HOD 59-2020; and 8. approve in principle the draft Submerged Assessment, Volume 1 on warfare materials. Page 2 of 2 Warfare Materials in the Baltic Sea – Model Chapter Germany 2020-10-02 Draft v0.018 HELCOM Thematic Assessment on Hazardous Submerged Objects in the Baltic Sea (Submerged Assessment), Volume 1 Warfare Materials in the Baltic Sea I Warfare Materials in the Baltic Sea – Model Chapter Germany 2020-10-02 HELCOM Submerged Co-chairs: SUBMERGED – Munitions: Jens Sternheim (Ministry of Energy, Agriculture, the Environment and Rural Areas of the Land of Schleswig-Holstein (MELUND SH)) SUBMERGED – Wrecks: Jorma Rytkönen (Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE)) HELCOM Secretariat: Markus Helavuori II Warfare Materials in the Baltic Sea – Model Chapter Germany 2020-10-02 Content List of Figures ...................................................................................................................... VII List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... VIII Executive Summary ............................................................................................................. IX 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 The Warfare Materials Threat in the Baltic Sea ....................................................... 1 1.2 Introduction to HELCOM SUBMERGED .................................................................. 2 1.3 Objective of the Report ............................................................................................ 2 1.4 Scope of the Report ................................................................................................ 2 Limitations ........................................................................................................ 2 2. Warfare Materials – State of Knowledge ........................................................................ 3 2.1 Historic Overview .................................................................................................... 3 2.2 Modes of Entry ........................................................................................................ 5 2.3 Geographic Distribution ........................................................................................... 7 Dumping Sites .................................................................................................. 7 Confirmed Contaminated Areas ....................................................................... 9 Suspected Areas .............................................................................................. 9 Relocation of Objects ....................................................................................... 9 2.3.4.1 Current-induced mobilisation ....................................................................10 2.3.4.2 Wave-induce mobilization ........................................................................10 2.3.4.3 Human modes of relocation......................................................................12 Burial of Objects ..............................................................................................12 2.4 Properties of Warfare Materials ..............................................................................15 Types of Warfare Materials .............................................................................15 2.4.1.1 Conventional Explosive ............................................................................15 2.4.1.1.1 Bombs...................................................................................................15 2.4.1.1.2 Mines ....................................................................................................17 2.4.1.1.3 Rockets .................................................................................................21 2.4.1.1.4 Torpedoes .............................................................................................23 2.4.1.1.5 Depth Charges ......................................................................................24 2.4.1.1.6 Antisubmarine Rockets .........................................................................24 2.4.1.1.7 Artillery Shells .......................................................................................25 2.4.1.2 Conventional Incendiary ...........................................................................26 I Warfare Materials in the Baltic Sea – Model Chapter Germany 2020-10-02 2.4.1.3 Chemical ..................................................................................................27 Munition Compounds ......................................................................................27 2.4.2.1 Explosives ................................................................................................29