🔗 Share this article

Southern Water is conducting an inquiry after a vast number of contaminated plastic beads appeared on Camber Sands beach, sparking worries of a potential "ecological disaster".

The plastic pellets could cause severe harm on ocean creatures, as stated by a regional representative, with concerns that rare sea life, including coastal birds, porpoises, and marine mammals, might ingest them and die.

The area's representative believes the pellets may have been spilled from a local filtration facility and has written to the top official, requesting an explanation.

This coastal area, located in the southeastern region, is a highly popular shoreline, known for rare dune habitat and vast stretches of fine grains.

Local helpers have been working urgently to clear the pellets, filling dozens of bags with the synthetic debris, but the scale of the contamination event is vast, and it is improbable they will be able to remove all of them.

A representative from a plastic pollution campaign group commented recently, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever witnessed. It is contaminated plastic. Sea creatures will ingest tiny synthetic pieces once they are in the ocean; they will draw in microorganisms, they will smell like food, in essence."

"Once they’ve eaten it, there's no turning back: they can’t get it out. They will remain buoyant. It will create a slick which draws in diving coastal birds."

He added that the removal work have been exhausting. "Recently, I was out there removing the debris. We are trying to really piece together the timeline and the details for this devastating incident. It’s awful."

"They are so small that from a a distance, the beach appears unaffected. But as soon as you approach closely, you see there are millions black pellets, hidden among marine plants. It’s an impossible task – helpers have been raking for days, and they will continue to rake, but we won’t be able to get rid of them all. It is the most severe I have ever seen of a contaminated shoreline."

The elected official, who joined the clean-up efforts, stated, "The immense quantity of polymer pellets that have washed up here threatens an ecological disaster. These plastic items are deadly to ocean and land animals, and we are already seeing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the coast."

"Community members are working tirelessly to clear away as many pellets as possible, but it’s a urgent effort. Southern Water must urgently establish if their nearby treatment facilities could be the origin of these biobeads, and I’ve requested to dedicate all available resources to aiding the removal efforts in the meantime."

The beads are additionally hazardous to canines as they hold a high number of PAHs, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they often contain harmful substances such as lead, antimony, and chemical elements.

An official representative for the water company stated, "We are working closely with the Environment Agency and district authorities to investigate the source of plastic beads which have washed up on Camber Beach. The inquiry is ongoing."

"The district council is overseeing removal of the beach, using trained personnel with a vehicle with suction equipment to extract the beads. We are additionally assisting with the clean-up."

"We have performed water-quality sampling on the beach, which has shown no impact to the aquatic environment. This data has been provided with the district council and the regulatory body."

Regulatory officials has been contacted for comment.