Areas that were formerly chosed and designated for dumping munitions at sea. The dataset was made based on information compiled by the HELCOM ad hoc Expert Group to Update and Review the Existing Information on Dumped Chemical Munitions in the Baltic Sea (HELCOM MUNI). The areas displayed indicate areas formerly chosen and designated for dumping munitions at sea, e.g, by instructing the ships' captains to dump in sight of a landmark or moored buoy. In addition the dataset contains information about a suspected dumpsite in the Gdansk deep. It should also be noted that dumping of munitions was also occasionally conducted outside of the known and designated dumping areas. The use of these terms is not necessarily reflected in the descriptions contained in sea charts. While the area south of Little Belt was used as a dumping area, for example, in contemporary sea charts it is only described as ‘foul (explosives)’ and not as ‘explosives dumping ground'. For more information, see the HELCOM MUNI report Chemical Munitions dumped in the Baltic Sea (HELCOM 2013). The dataset was updated in June 2023 with the dataset provided by Gunnar Möller (Mine Warfare Data Center (C MWDC), 4th Naval Warfare Flottilla, Berga, Sweden) containing dumping areas. This dataset was created and approved for publication by EG Submerged. The data from German territorial waters and EEZ were withheld from the updated dataset.

This dataset contains information about reported encounters of sea dumped chemical munitions in the Baltic Sea from 1961 to 2012. For further details see Annex 7.2 of the HELCOM 2013 report: Chemical Munitions Dumped in the Baltic Sea - Report of the ad hoc Expert Group to Update and Review the Existing Information on Dumped Chemical Munitions in the Baltic Sea (HELCOM MUNI). This dataset includes incidents of encounters with chemical warfare agents dumped in the Baltic Sea. The position of encounters is given in decimal degrees (WGS84), where the information is available (encounters lacking this geographic information are also included in the dataset, although they lack coordinates). The weight of the warfare agent payload (net weight) was estimated by visual inspection. Disposal on land or the relocation to emergency disposal sites due to potential explosive hazards is indicated, where the information is available. Data sources include incidents reported by HELCOM countries since the establishment of the HELCOM reporting system in 1994, fishing and shoring incidents with chemical warfare materials in Poland(since 1952-1983) and Denmark (1968-1984); the 1991 SACSA report and HELCOM 1994. Further, information about encounters of chemical warfare material by the Nord Stream pipeline project have been included in the dataast. For more details, see the HELCOM report on Dumped chemical munitions in the Baltic Sea (HELCOM 2013). http://www.helcom.fi/Documents/Ministerial2013/Associated%20documents/Background/Dumped%20chemical%20munitions%20in%20the%20Baltic%20Sea.pdf References: HELCOM (1994): Report on chemical munitions dumped in the Baltic Sea –report to the 16th Meeting of Helsinki Commission, 8- 11 March 1994, from the Ad Hoc Working Group on Dumped Chemical Munition (HELCOM CHEMU). Danish Environmental Protection Agency (1994). SACSA (1991): Dumping of war gas ammunition –documentation of the Helsinki Commission. Document SACSA 18/8/1-E, presented at the 18thmeeting of the Standing Advisory Committee for Scientific Advicetranscribed from SACSA 1991.

Areas where en-route dumping of chemical munitions is suspected to have occured while they were being transported to the designated dumpsite south of Little Belt. The southern entrance to the Little Belt is an area that was used by German troops and refugees for munitions disposal during the last days of WWII. This dataset illustrates that areas where, according to historical accounts, en-route dumping of chemical munitions is likely to have taken place on the way to the official designated dumping area. For more information, see the HELCOM MUNI report (2013): Chemical Munitions dumped in the Baltic Sea. http://www.helcom.fi/Documents/Ministerial2013/Associated%20documents/Background/Dumped%20chemical%20munitions%20in%20the%20Baltic%20Sea.pdf

This dataset gives an overview of the main areas in the Baltic Sea where sea dumped chemical warfare materials have been reported to be found. This dataset gives an overview of the main areas in the Baltic Sea where sea dumped chemical warfare materials have been found. The areas are drawn based on reported encounters where fishermenhave netted chemical warfare materials. For more information, see the HELCOM 2013 MUNI report on dumped chemical munitions in the Baltic Sea: http://www.helcom.fi/Documents/Ministerial2013/Associated%20documents/Background/Dumped%20chemical%20munitions%20in%20the%20Baltic%20Sea.pdf

Designated and suspected alternative routes along which chemical munitions were transported to the designated dumping areas in the Baltic Sea after World War II. This dataset illustrates the designated and suspected alternative routes along which chemical munitions were transported to the designated dumping areas in the Baltic Sea after World War II. For more information, see the HELCOM MUNI report (2013): Chemical Munitions dumped in the Baltic Sea. http://www.helcom.fi/Documents/Ministerial2013/Associated%20documents/Background/Dumped%20chemical%20munitions%20in%20the%20Baltic%20Sea.pdf