Explosive ordnance clearance in MV: 143 hectares liberated, 38,000 hectares remain!

In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a total of 143 hectares of forest area were cleared of explosive ordnance in 2024. This is the result of several large-scale cleanup projects that were successfully completed. The areas cleared include locations in Dargen Hafen, Wöbbelin and Stern Buchholz. In Dargen Hafen, for example, 365 tons of explosive ordnance were recovered from a former blast site NDR reported.

The clearance operations are in collaboration with the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Ammunition Recovery Service (MBD), which spent 3.6 million euros on the clearance in the same year. As part of these measures, more than 106 hectares were cleared of explosive ordnance and can now be used again. In addition, the personnel capacity in the ammunition recovery service increased to a total of 55 employees, 18 more than before.

Current status of clearances

In the Wöbbelin area, the clearance was part of a project that was initiated after a forest fire in June 2021. Overall, the state government's clearance budget, which was set at 6.7 million euros for 2024, increased almost fivefold. So far, 4.72 million euros have been called up, which illustrates the increasing urgency of such measures.

Operations in recent years have also shown that around 38,000 hectares nationwide are still considered highly contaminated. There are also the current results of extensive investigations: around 600 hectares of contaminated areas were examined and 7,374 test fields on 921 hectares were processed. No dangerous ordnance was found, only fragments of grenades were documented Press portal reported.