PROJECT
Baltwreck
Preventing massive marine waters chemical pollution from the leaking wrecks and munition/ weapon dumps in the South Baltic
PROGRAMME
Total budget: 3,830,285.76 €
ERDF funding: 3,064,228.60 €
Duration: 2024–2027
Lead Partner: Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery Polish Academy of Sciences
Consortium: 14 partners from Poland, Lithuania, Germany and Sweden
PROJECT
OBJECTIVE
The BALTWRECK objective is to contribute to reducing pollution of the Baltic Sea by hazardous fuel, munitions and other remains of shipwrecks by jointly developing, demonstrating and implementing wreck management methods.
EXPECTED
RESULTS
Results will include:
- efficient wrecks diagnostics methods,
- in-situ remediation technologies for hazardous fuels from wrecks as well as munition and explosives,
- testing the developed solutions in at least 3 pilot locations, and
- examining the toxicological risk for marine ecosystems caused by dumped munitions and hydrocarbon deposits.
Last but not least, the recommendations for policy makers, local marine and cities administration will be formulated.
The project aims to include municipalities located in the vicinity of wrecks in the decision process, by raising awareness of decision makers and general public via a series of workshops and conferences, as well as public information campaign.
KEY AREAS
The BALTWRECK project concentrates on four key areas:
Policy
Risk Assessment
& decision making
Remediation
Public Awareness
PROJECT
PARTNERS
The BALTWRECK Consortium consists of 14 partners and is coordinated by the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery PAS.
1. Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery Polish Academy of Sciences (https://www.imp.gda.pl)
2. University of Gdańsk (https://ug.edu.pl)
3. Association of Polish Communes Euroregion Baltic (https://eurobalt.org.pl/en/home-en)
4. Gdynia Maritime University (https://umg.edu.pl/en)
5. Klaipeda University (https://www.ku.lt/en)
6. Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research in Warnemünde (io-warnemuende.de/en_index.html)
7. JT Ship Service Tomasz Jatkowski
8. Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (https://www.geomar.de/en)
9. Nature Research Centre (https://gamtostyrimai.lt/en)
10. Chalmers University of Technology (https://www.chalmers.se/en)
11. German Environment Agency (https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/en)
12. North.io LtD. (https://north.io/en)
13. CLEANERGY LtD. (www.bioecoph.pl)
14. Jagiellonian University (https://en.uj.edu.pl/en_GB/start)
PROJECT
NEWS
Oceanograf Cruise: Investigating Baltic Sea Wrecks
As part of the BALTWRECK project, the cruise explored shipwrecks on the Baltic Sea floor, documenting sites and collecting visual material on environmental risks from sunken vessels. Short video reels show on-board activities, research equipment, and underwater observations, providing insight into the complexity of studying historical wrecks and supporting outreach by communicating the project’s objectives. Watch video:
New Media Coverage
The environmental impact of Baltic Sea shipwrecks was highlighted in Lithuania. On December 6, 2025, 15min.lt published an article noting that thousands of wrecks may contain hazardous substances, emphasizing the need for monitoring and research. Link: https://www.15min.lt/verslas/naujiena/mokslas-it/baltijos-dugne-tukstanciai-nuskendusiu-laivu-mokslininkai-perspeja-apie-ju-pavoju-1290-2562584 (LT)
New Television Coverage
On October 10, 2025, LRT’s program Labas rytas, Lietuva featured research on sunken vessels, noting that 20,000–100,000 wrecks remain largely unexplored despite potential environmental and safety risks. Link: https://www.lrt.lt/mediateka/irasas/2000520028/tiria-nuskendusius-laivus-baltijos-juroje-tokiu-skenduoliu-ten-nuo-20-iki-100-tukst?srsltid=AfmBOoqbMPQWfDYMMJqieWZACexOy125wNiszX3qWl9MDZUYjABCvDY0
BaltWreck at Blue Mission BANOS – 4th Mission Arena
During the Blue Mission BANOS event in Sopot, the 𝘽𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙒𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙠 project was highlighted in a dedicated workshop addressing underwater ammunition and shipwrecks as one of the major environmental threats to the Baltic Sea.The session titled 𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙍𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙍𝙞𝙨𝙠: 𝙍𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙒𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙠𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙈𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙞𝙘 showcased the project’s key goals: preventing chemical pollution from leaking wrecks and munition dumps through:developing harmonised management plans for hazardous wrecks,supporting decision-makers with risk-based data and tools,raising public awareness – for example, through educational
MEDIA
CONTACT
If you have any questions regarding the project, feel free to contact us via the contact form.