🔗 Share this article

The water company is conducting an inquiry after a vast number of contaminated plastic beads appeared on the shoreline at Camber, raising fears of a possible "ecological disaster".

These biobeads could have a dire impact on marine life, as stated by a regional representative, with concerns that rare sea life, including coastal birds, small cetaceans, and marine mammals, might consume them and perish.

The area's representative believes the pellets may have been spilled from a nearby water treatment centre and has sent a letter to the water company's chief executive, demanding an account.

Camber Sands, located in East Sussex, is a highly popular shoreline, featuring rare dune habitat and vast stretches of golden sand.

Local helpers have been racing against time to clear the beads, filling dozens of bags with the synthetic debris, but the scale of the contamination event is vast, and it is unlikely they will be able to remove all of them.

An expert from a environmental organization remarked over the weekend, "This is the worst pollution event I have ever witnessed. It is polluted polymer. Sea creatures will ingest small plastic items once they are in the sea; they will attract algae, they will appear edible, effectively."

"After ingestion, there's no turning back: they can’t get it out. They will remain buoyant. It will form a layer which draws in plunging seabirds."

He added that the clean-up efforts have been exhausting. "Recently, I was on site cleaning it up. We are trying to really piece together the timeline and the story for this horrendous event. It’s awful."

"The pellets are minuscule that from a a distance, the shoreline appears unaffected. But as soon as you get close up, you see there are millions dark beads, nestled under seaweed. It’s an unachievable mission – helpers have been raking for days, and they will keep at it, but we cannot remove every pellet. It is the most severe I have ever seen of a contaminated shoreline."

The elected official, who participated in the clean-up efforts, stated, "The huge number of plastic beads that have appeared on this shore threatens an environmental catastrophe. These plastic items are lethal to marine life and wildlife, and we are observing increased mortality among marine species on the beach."

"Local residents are working tirelessly to clear away as many pellets as possible, but it’s a race against time. The water company must urgently establish if their nearby treatment facilities could be the source of these biobeads, and I’ve requested to commit every possible asset to supporting the clean-up operation in the meantime."

These pellets are also dangerous to dogs as they hold a high number of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have cancer-causing traits, and they often contain toxins including lead, metalloids, and chemical elements.

A spokesperson for the water company said, "We are collaborating with the regulatory body and local council to investigate the source of polymer pellets which have washed up on the shoreline. The inquiry is still in progress."

"Local officials is leading the clean-up of the beach, using specialists with a specialized machinery to remove the pellets. We are also supporting with the clean-up."

"We have performed environmental testing on the beach, which has shown no impact to environmental water quality. This data has been shared with the district council and the regulatory body."

The Environment Agency has been contacted for a statement.