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‘ticking time bombs’ sitting beneath world’s waters

AAEAAQAAAAAAAAMTAAAAJDkwZDEzZDljLTRlNDYtNDAzYS05ZDk4LTdlNjQwYzE5MmFjZghttp://www.theunderground.nl/time-bombs-under-surface/

People & Passions, TU4

In the picure:IDUM – Underwater Conventional Munitions Site off Nova Scotia, Canada

Crusade to eliminate ‘ticking time bombs’ sitting beneath world’s waters 

We all have our own battles to fight and this is mine.” These are the fighting words of Terrance Long, founder and director of the International Dialogue on Underwater Munitions (IDUM).

Based in The Hague, Long’s organisation is on a mission to rid the world of “millions” of tonnes of weapons rotting in seas and oceans across the globe.
The world’s waters, says Long, have become a dangerous “garbage dump” for these unwanted military munitions, ranging from highly explosive conventional ordnances to chemical weapons.

It’s a stark warning that Long doesn’t attempt to sugar coat. “If the underwater munitions aren’t neutralized or recovered from our waters in the near term then the ocean will die and we will cease to exist on this planet.”

A retired Canadian military engineer and an expert in explosive ordnance disposal, Long spent 20 years, both in the army and later for various NGOs, clearing land mines.
It was this experience that led Long to believe the same work could and should be done for the same weapons sitting at the bottom of the water.

“Because I’m a weapons expert, in my own mind I’m obligated to address this issue. There is something I can do about it, so I will.”

It’s a problem that has been ticking away for over 70 years. As Long explains, weapons, like most things, have an expiration date and need to be disposed of. By the end of the Second World War a solution was needed and during the Potsdam Conference of 1945 an agreement was made to rid stockpiled weapons by dumping them into the water, most notably the Baltic Sea.

According to Long, “That’s when a number of countries from around the globe started dumping their munitions, dating back from the First World World and continued doing so up until the 1970s.”

One of the biggest issues now facing Long and the IDUM is locating exactly where all the world’s munition dumping sites are located and exactly how many weapons there are.

“What we do know is that there are 400,000 tonnes of chemical munitions in the Baltic Sea alone. On a global scale, we estimate there are more than 10,000 dumping sites of chemical and conventional weapons.”

According to Long, these corroding weapons are posing an ever increasing danger to the environment and to us.

“They’re full of contaminates like lead, mercury, picric acid and TNT. Most are known carcinogens that we now have in our marine environment, that will persist there for 10,000 years. Our oceans cannot sustain that.”

He continued: “This really is a ticking time bomb. My greatest fear is that our international community will allow them to corrode to where we no longer have a means to detect the contaminates when the metals are gone.”

Despite the dire warnings, Long stresses there is hope: “This is absolutely a problem we can fix…in most cases if we remove the source contaminant, we remove the problem.

“But this issue needs to be addressed on a global scale, with a collective response, right now, with an urgent United Nations conference on all underwater weapons.”

In order to do this, Long and the IDUM continue to work for the creation of an internationally binding treaty on all classes of underwater munitions. The end game, says Long, is all about “protecting our oceans and saving them for our children.”

Text: Susannah Palk

Photo: © IDUM – Wentworth Environment Inc.

Please Sign Our Petition to Save our Seas and Ocean

AAEAAQAAAAAAAAY7AAAAJDRiZDc4OWEyLTM3MGItNDUwNi1hM2M2LTkzYjkxZWM5NDUxNwPlease Sign Petition for United Nations Conference on Sea Dumped Weapon’s

It’s common to find underwater weapons in our seas and ocean. Governments continue to hide behind the Potsdam Agreement as justification to do nothing while our fish become contaminated to where they are not fit for human consumption. Chemical contaminates from these underwater weapons are creating a “Food Security Concern” whereas the chemicals effect the Juvenal fish ability to reproduce.

http://www.change.org/p/united-nations-secretary-general-call-for-an-immediate-united-nations-conference-on-underwater-chemical-radiological-and-conventional-weapons-dumped-at-sea-to-create-a-binding-treaty-on-for-the-environmental-friendly-clean-up-of-our-ocean-and-seas

Petition for Urgent United Nations Conference on Sea Dumped Weapons

AAEAAQAAAAAAAALFAAAAJGRkZGQxYzc2LThkZmYtNGJiNy05YzUwLTg3MGI0NjVkNTliYgPIC: Toxic Plums from Underwater Weapons Drift in the Seas and Ocean (MEDEA)

It’s becoming common to find underwater weapons in all our seas and ocean on a daily base. Governments continue to hide behind the Potsdam Agreement as justification to do nothing while our fish become contaminated to where they are not fit for human consumption. Chemical contaminates from these underwater weapons are creating a “Food Security Concern” whereas the chemicals effect the Juvenal fish to the point where they cannot reproduce which in many cases are mistaken for over fishing. Governments want us to believe that these weapons that have been designed to create death and destruction cannot affect human health or the health of our depleting fish stock.

We have the technology and global EOD experts to eradicate these weapons safely and environmental friendly from our waters.

We need your help by taking the time to sign our petition to save the seas and ocean from these “Point Source Emitters of Pollution”, remove them from the water and the toxic source is removed.

Please sign our petition below for an “Urgent United Nations Conference on Sea Dumped Weapons”. Please forward to your friends and ask them to sign as well.

http://www.change.org/p/united-nations-secretary-general-call-for-an-immediate-united-nations-conference-on-underwater-chemical-radiological-and-conventional-weapons-dumped-at-sea-to-create-a-binding-treaty-on-for-the-environmental-friendly-clean-up-of-our-ocean-and-seas

Thank you for your time and consideration. Your help is most welcomed

Terrance P. Long

WOULD YOU EAT FISH FROM THE BALTIC SEA

AAEAAQAAAAAAAAJRAAAAJDBiMjMzZGUwLWU1MjktNDc5ZC05ZGIwLTAwODMxYjEyOWU1ZAPic: Cod fish caught during CHEMSEA with cancer tumors, stress on liver and kidneys and increase in the fish being sick……

Globally, in our ocean and seas unexploded munitions lay on our seabed releasing contaminates into our food web and crossing international boundaries. Government sit idle in hopes that the munitions will magically disappear or just go away. Its the Governments that tell us these fish are safe to eat while they continually change policy to allow for greater human consumption of carcinogens. There actions demonstrates their lack of understanding or willing to address this major “Food Security Concern” that by itself will destroy the ocean and seas has we know them. Its time to call on your country’s leadership to host an emergency conference at the United Nations to discuss global clean-up of these “Point Source Emitters of Pollution”. We only have one ocean and the first major impact are being felt in the Baltic and Black Seas.

Terrance P. Long Chairman, IDUM, www.underwatermunitions.org

More than 280,000 Sea Mines Release Toxins into Baltic Sea – Food Web

AAEAAQAAAAAAAALZAAAAJGMxOWIyY2Q3LTU5NjAtNDE5Mi05NWU0LWQ2MDg1YTg0NzY0OAWhen you sit down to eat fish do you ever wonder where it came from or how safe is it to eat for you and your children? You should know and want to know to protect yourself and children from fish caught in contaminated waters. I personnel known the impact that munitions constituents can have on our fish stocks from tumors, deformities to stress on the kidneys and livers including decreases in basic health of the fish. The stress from underwater munitions reduce juvenal fish the ability to reproduce which will create a major “Global Food Security Concern” for industrial and developing nations. Its time for the United Nations to host an urgent conference on underwater munitions to develop a Binding Treaty on the environmental friendly recovery and disposal of all classes of these “Point Source Emitters of Pollution”. Remove them from the water and you remove the source of pollutions. http://www.change.org/p/united-nations-secretary-general-call-for-an-immediate-united-nations-conference-on-underwater-chemical-radiological-and-conventional-weapons-dumped-at-sea-to-create-a-binding-treaty-on-for-the-environmental-friendly-clean-up-of-our-ocean-and-seas

It’s time to recover sea dumped weapons before they destroy our ocean

AAEAAQAAAAAAAAEeAAAAJGE4ZmU0ZmUyLWIyZDgtNDk5OC1iNjI3LTQ5NDdkNTk1NDU0ZAJC King US Department of the Army for Health, Safety and Environment and Terrance P. Long, Chairman, International Dialogue on Underwater Munitions (IDUM) debate the pro’s and con’s to clean-up at the pentagon.

While governments debate policy on sea dumped weapons they continue at an alarming rate to pollute our ocean and seas. From the first world war up until the 1970’s countries use our oceans and seas as a cheap means to dispose of their excess, obsolete, damaged and time expired munitions. For many years most militaries of the world collected dividends from these temporary disposals at sea. For in fact they never have been dispose of but strategically dumped in every access of our ocean. Some site measured in the 10,000’s of tons that contain known human carcinogens such as TNT which breakdown product, DNT is also a human carcinogens that will persist in the marine environment for 1000’s of years. CHEMSEA has found tumors in the fish with extra fish diseases and stress on the livers and kidneys in the munitions sites while outside the sites no impact was found in the fish. We are in a RACE…when the metals are gone we will have no way to detect the lumps of TNT. Its time for everyone to speak out for recovery of these point source emitter of pollution….. together we can save our seas and ocean…

Hazardous waste treatment urged for underwater munitions

Terry Long of Sydney, N.S. presented resolution to the UN

CBC News Posted: Nov 22, 2013 1:28 PM AT Last Updated: Nov 22, 2013 1:28 PM AT

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/hazardous-waste-treatment-urged-for-underwater-munitions-1.2436682

Hazardous waste treatment urged for underwater munitions

It’s estimated the site of the S.S. City of Vienna off Sambro Island has up to 10,000 munitions (CBC)

A Nova Scotia expert on underwater munitions is calling on the United Nations to treat the weapons as hazardous chemical waste.

Terry Long, chair of the International Dialogue on Underwater Munitions, returned to Sydney this week after presenting his resolution to the UN.

He said labelling underwater munitions as hazardous chemical waste would help agencies determine what should be done with them.

Unused munitions have been dumped in oceans around the world. Decades of ships dumping unexploded military devices have resulted in 3,000 dump sites off the coast of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia alone.

“Ones off of Cape Breton for an example in 4VN, which is one of our rich fishing zones, you are looking at a documented  minimum of 80,000 tonnes of munitions. A lot of these munitions are carcinogens and they do have an impact on the fish and in return if we eat these fish, we also will have an impact from them,” said Long, who spent 16 years as a military engineer with the Canadian forces working in bomb disposal.

Fish off of Sydney have not been tested, but Long says research in the Baltic Sea found tumours on some fish.

Long said a study in the Bedford Basin found chemicals in a lobster fishing area three metres away from munitions.

A final vote on the United Nations resolution will take place in a few weeks.

Underwater Munitions Dumps

Terry Long is an expert on the disposal of explosive devices lying on the sea bed.

Around Sydney Harbour he says there could be as many as six-thousand dump sites that we need to consider before running cable between Newfoundland and Nova Scotia.

Listen (runs 7:57)

http://www.cbc.ca/mainstreetcb/blog/2013/06/18/underwater-munitions-dumps/

Q & A with munitions expert Terry Long

By GORDON DELANEY Staff Reporter
Published May 27, 2013 – 8:06am
Last Updated May 27, 2013 – 8:11am

http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1131549-q-a-with-munitions-expert-terry-long

Q & A with munitions expert Terry Long

Unexploded ordinance, disabled or non-live bombs are flagged for disposal in the live impact area of the former US Naval Training Range, on Vieques Island, off Puerto Rico in 2007. (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Terry Long of Sydney is a former military engineer and explosive ordnance disposal expert with more than 30 year experience.

Since leaving the military, Long, has worked at clearing munitions from land and underwater sites. In 2004, he formed the International Dialogue on Underwater Munitions, a non-governmental organization that provides a platform for industry, politicians and stakeholders to explore and address the issue.

He spoke on the issue in a recent interview from The Hague. (His answers have been edited for length.)

For a number of years, we’ve had the Chemical Weapons Convention, but sea-dump munitions have never been part of it. Recently, we hosted an event in co-operation with Lithuania and Poland where we were able to discuss sea-dump munitions with people from around the world. Some delegations from different countries were not even aware that they had munitions in the oceans, like Iceland, Australia and New Zealand and India. We were able to get a piece put into the Chemical Weapons Convention, and we now have a working document. We have a voluntary form of co-operation to look at cleaning up the munitions. There has been consensus that it’s time to reduce the negative impact on our oceans.

Q: How important is that?

A: This is a landmark decision by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Nobody thought we were going to get anywhere. Instead of one line, we got a three-page working document and a complete paragraph, which is a lot.

Q: What does it mean for Nova Scotia?

A: By doing so, we can create an economic stimulus for the transfer of technologies and skills to other countries. We could have European countries working with Canadian and U.S. companies cleaning this stuff up. There are more than 3,000 sites off the coasts of Nova Scotia where First and Second World War munitions were dumped. There would be multiple opportunities for Nova Scotians. All the equipment I use is very high-tech. It’s a perfect thing for today’s generation to work with.

Q: What does it mean for you personally?

A: It means an international opportunity where I can take young people and develop high-tech skills and travel to other parts of the world to detect, map and clean up munitions. I have my own autonomous underwater vehicle … which has a (side-scan sonar), one of the most sophisticated scanners you can get today. We can take photos beneath the ocean and under the seabed to create 3-D images of where munitions are and how to address cleaning them up.

Q: What’s the next step?

A: To have another event on technology in The Hague in July with 190 states. We’ll sit down and start looking at some of the things that need to be done. A lot of what we’re doing now is collecting information and preparing to report to the secretary general of the United Nations in December. I will be identifying the concerns and how we address this collectively. Some of the things we need are policy standards and procedures and an international trust fund for cleanup. Everybody wants to move forward. Even the Americans and Russians are on board.

Undersea danger drives munitions activist

MARY ELLEN MacINTYRE STAFF REPORTER
Published April 22, 2014 – 8:03pm
Last Updated April 23, 2014 – 7:31am

http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1202433-undersea-danger-drives-munitions-activist

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Long targets munitions, chemical weapons

Undersea danger drives munitions activistTerry Long, shown in February on the Bedford Basin, says he’s passionate about creating awareness of the dangers associated with underwater munitions and chemical weapons. (TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Just prior to next month’s fifth International Dialogue on Underwater Munitions conference at Saint Mary’s University, Terry Long has something else to do.

“I am one of the directors of NATO’s Science for Peace and Security program and we’ll be meeting to discuss a number of topics for a couple of days just before the conference gets underway,” said Long, a former Canadian military engineer and chairman of the international event.

While that might all sound impressive, Long, who was born and raised in Sydney, says it’s all part of his plan to help create awareness of the dangers associated with underwater munitions and chemical weapons.

“I am passionate about this subject,” he said in an interview Tuesday.

“We’ll have an open house for people from companies and students to come and see the kinds of technology being used and developed to rid our oceans, rivers and lakes of munitions and chemicals around the world.”

Long said he expects about 150 people to attend the conference.

“There will be delegates from about 40 countries, people from government, industry, military — these are international stakeholders,” he said.

Delegates from NATO, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the oil and gas industry and environmental protection agencies are among those coming.

Since his retirement from the military 10 years ago, Long has devoted himself to this work.

“There are concerns for human health and the health of fish stocks because underwater chemical weapons have been dumped into oceans, rivers and lakes and are constantly releasing chemicals,” he said.

“Chemicals released into the water create stress, liver deformities among the fish stocks and if you don’t clean them up, the fish stocks are gravely affected.”

Underwater munitions pose threats to drilling rigs and underwater exploration, he said.

“Collectively, there are things we can do about this and there are technologies out there in use now and under development,” Long added.

The conference runs May 28-29, with an international economic summit on marine, environment and defence industries to be held May 30.

Long said he hopes local companies will take advantage of the conference to learn how they can become a part of a global solution.

“There are opportunities for Nova Scotia companies in this industry,” he said. “This is a call to action through technology on an international scale.”

The conference presents an opportunity for industries and technologies of all kinds, Long said.

“We’ll have demonstrations of technology at the Canadian Forces Fleet Diving Unit at Shearwater using unmanned vehicles,” he said.

One of the demonstrations will include the U.S. navy’s marine mammal team from San Diego.

“They’ll bring two large dolphins to demonstrate munitions retrieval.”