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Southern Water is currently investigating after millions of contaminated plastic beads appeared on the shoreline at Camber, raising worries of a possible "ecological disaster".

These biobeads could cause severe harm on marine life, according to a regional representative, with concerns that rare sea life, such as coastal birds, small cetaceans, and seals, might ingest them and die.

A local official believes the beads may have been released from a nearby water treatment centre and has written to the top official, demanding an explanation.

This coastal area, situated in East Sussex, is one of England’s most beloved beaches, featuring unique sandy ecosystems and vast stretches of golden sand.

Volunteers have been racing against time to remove the pellets, filling multiple sacks with the plastic waste, but the scale of the pollution spill is immense, and it is improbable they will be able to remove all of them.

An expert from a environmental organization remarked recently, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever witnessed. It is contaminated plastic. Sea creatures will ingest small plastic items once they are in the sea; they will draw in microorganisms, they will appear edible, effectively."

"After ingestion, that’s it: they cannot expel it. They will remain buoyant. It will form a layer which draws in plunging seabirds."

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

"The pellets are minuscule that from a very long way off, the shoreline looks normal. But as soon as you get close up, you see there are millions black pellets, nestled under seaweed. It’s an impossible task – volunteers have been working tirelessly, and they will keep at it, but we cannot remove every pellet. It is the worst I have ever seen of a contaminated shoreline."

The elected official, who participated in the removal work, remarked, "The huge number of polymer pellets that have washed up here threatens an environmental catastrophe. These plastic items are deadly to ocean and land animals, and we are already seeing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the beach."

"Local residents are laboring diligently to remove as many pellets as possible, but it’s a race against time. The water company must urgently establish if their local wastewater plants 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 canines as they contain a significant amount of PAHs, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they frequently include harmful substances including heavy metals, metalloids, and chemical elements.

An official representative for the water company stated, "We are collaborating with the Environment Agency and local council to look into the cause of plastic beads which have been deposited on Camber Beach. The inquiry is ongoing."

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

"We’ve conducted water-quality sampling on the coast, which has shown no impact to environmental water quality. This data has been shared with the local authorities and the Environment Agency."

The Environment Agency has been contacted for comment.