Switzerland announced an impressive $58,000 prize for the most innovative solutions to retrieve the submerged explosives that were discarded into its lakes in the past.
Armasuisse, Switzerland’s federal office for defense procurement, announced that the crash prize worth 50,000 Swiss francs ($57,800) will be divided among the top three submissions.
The competition will run until February 6, 2025, with winners announced in April. Although the winning plans won’t be executed immediately, they could serve as a foundation for future research into safely managing submerged weapons.
“With the launching of an idea competition, armasuisse wants to increasingly involve academia and industry in the considerations on how environmentally friendly and safe recovery of deep lake ammunition could be carried out, should this ever become an issue,” reads the statement.
“This could be the case if, against all expectations, the release of pollutants from submerged ammunition were to be established during ongoing lake water monitoring.”
Between 1918 and 1964, various munitions, some surplus, faulty, or outdated, were submerged in lakes like Lake Thun, Lake Brienz, and Lake Lucerne. These weapons now lie buried between 150 and 220 meters (492 and 722 feet) beneath the water’s surface, according to Armasuisse.
An earlier evaluation in 2005 revealed that all proposed retrieval methods at the time would result in significant sludge turbulence and pose major risks to the lake ecosystem.
“All these factors pose major challenges for environmentally responsible munition retrieval,” Armasuisse said ina statement, highlighting the difficulties such as poor visibility, explosion risks, water depth, and the size and weight of the munitions.
Some components are made of non-magnetic metals like copper, brass, or aluminum, adding to the complexity.
The Swiss Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection, and Sport hopes to integrate academia and industry in discussions on safe and environmentally responsible retrieval methods. This could be vital if pollutant release from submerged munitions is detected during ongoing lake water monitoring.
Switzerland previously addressed historic munitions, such as in 2020 when 3,500 tons of explosives were removed from a depot, leading to the evacuation of the village of Mitholz.
In 1947, an estimated 7,000 tons of explosives at the depot exploded, killing nine people and causing significant damage to the village.