Overview

• The Baltic Lift departed Rostock on August 8 to conduct round-the-clock recovery operations in two 24-member shifts at 22 meters depth.
• The pilot project is financed with roughly €5 million from the €100 million Sofortprogramm Munitionsaltlasten in Nord- und Ostsee and targets up to 15 tonnes of corroded explosives.
• Divers are lowered by specialized Tauchaufzüge to pre-sort ordnance underwater before shipping it to a federal disposal facility in Wismar.
• Company CEO Eyk-Uwe Pap estimates the Wismarer Bucht holds nearly 1 000 tonnes of WWII munitions, much of which lies beneath sediment beside a sunken transport barge.
• Experts warn that decades-old submerged weapons are leaching TNT and other toxins into the Baltic and North Sea, highlighting the need for nationwide clearance by 2040.