| dc.description.abstract | Dumping sites for WWII-era bombs and munitions are widespread in the North-East Atlantic. The dumped materiel in such sites pose risks to people and environment through the release of toxic chemicals and accidental detonation. One such dumping ground is in the Outer Fjord Basin in the Trondheimsfjord. The dumped materiel in this area provide hard substrate in an otherwise soft-bottomed location. The goal of this thesis is to survey the community and dumped materiel in this area using an ROV-mounted videocamera. The area was found to contain a high number of man-made objects, estimated to be >100,000. Of these, 1,500 were estimated to be 250 kg type bombs. 32 different taxa of organisms were observed, with a higher diversity among sessile than motile organisms. The common species of horny coral in the community, Paramuricea macandrewi, Duva florida, Primnoa resedaeformis and Paragorgia arborea, were found to have notably different preferences for substrate. Based on the objects that could be identified and what they were likely to contain, the risk to the environment in the event of a leak was judged to be low and the main risk was judged to be detonation. The potential for bioturbation in sediment, horny corals and macroalgea to serve as bio-indicators was investigated and macroalgae was judged to have potential to yield the most information. | |
