🔗 Share this article

Southern Water is currently investigating after millions of contaminated plastic beads appeared on Camber Sands beach, raising worries of a potential "environmental catastrophe".

These biobeads could have a dire impact on marine life, according to a local MP, with concerns that rare sea life, including coastal birds, porpoises, and seals, might ingest them and die.

A local official believes the pellets may have been spilled from a nearby water treatment centre and has sent a letter to the top official, requesting an account.

This coastal area, located in East Sussex, is one of England’s most beloved beaches, featuring rare dune habitat and expansive areas of fine grains.

Local helpers have been racing against time to remove the beads, filling dozens of bags with the plastic waste, but the scale of the pollution spill is vast, and it is improbable they will be able to clear every piece.

An expert from a plastic pollution campaign group remarked recently, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever witnessed. It is polluted polymer. Marine animals will ingest tiny synthetic pieces once they are in the ocean; they will attract algae, they will appear edible, effectively."

"After ingestion, there's no turning back: they cannot expel it. They will remain buoyant. It will form a layer which draws in diving coastal birds."

The expert continued that the clean-up efforts have been draining. "Yesterday, I was on site cleaning it up. We are trying to really piece together the sequence of events and the story for this devastating incident. It’s terrible."

"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, hidden among marine plants. It’s an unachievable mission – volunteers have been working tirelessly, and they will continue to rake, but we cannot remove every pellet. It is the worst I have ever encountered of a polluted beach."

The local MP, who joined the clean-up efforts, stated, "The huge number of plastic beads that have washed up here risks an ecological disaster. These plastic items are deadly to ocean and land animals, and we are observing increased mortality among marine species on the coast."

"Local residents are laboring diligently to clear away as many pellets as possible, but it’s a race against time. The water company must quickly determine if their nearby treatment facilities could be the source of these biobeads, and I’ve requested to dedicate all available resources to supporting the clean-up operation in the interim."

The beads are also dangerous to dogs as they contain a high number of PAHs, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they often contain toxins including lead, metalloids, and bromine.

A spokesperson for the water company stated, "We are working closely with the Environment Agency and local council to look into the cause of polymer pellets which have been deposited on Camber Beach. The inquiry is still in progress."

"Local officials is leading the clean-up of the beach, using specialists with a vehicle with suction equipment to extract the beads. We are also supporting with the clean-up."

"We have performed environmental testing on the beach, which has revealed no effect to environmental water quality. This data has been shared with the local authorities and the regulatory body."

The Environment Agency has been reached out to for a statement.