🔗 Share this article

Southern Water is currently investigating after millions of polluted polymer pellets appeared on the shoreline at Camber, raising worries of a potential "ecological disaster".

The plastic pellets could cause severe harm on marine life, as stated by a regional representative, with apprehensions that protected marine species, including coastal birds, porpoises, and marine mammals, might ingest them and perish.

A local official believes the pellets may have been released from a nearby water treatment centre and has written to the water company's chief executive, requesting an explanation.

Camber Sands, situated in the southeastern region, is a highly popular shoreline, known for unique sandy ecosystems and vast stretches of golden sand.

Volunteers have been working urgently to remove the beads, collecting dozens of bags with the synthetic debris, but the scale of the contamination event is immense, and it is improbable they will be able to clear every piece.

A representative from a plastic pollution campaign group commented over the weekend, "This is the worst pollution event I have ever witnessed. It is polluted polymer. Marine animals will ingest tiny synthetic pieces once they are in the ocean; they will draw in microorganisms, they will smell like food, effectively."

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

He added that the clean-up efforts have been draining. "Yesterday, I was out there cleaning it up. We are trying to really piece together the sequence of events and the details for this horrendous event. It’s terrible."

"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 – volunteers 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 encountered of a contaminated shoreline."

The local MP, who participated in the removal work, stated, "The huge number of plastic beads that have appeared on this shore risks an environmental catastrophe. These biobeads are lethal to ocean and land animals, and we are observing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the beach."

"Community members are working tirelessly to remove as many pellets as possible, but it’s a race against time. Southern Water must quickly determine if their nearby treatment facilities could be the origin of these biobeads, and I’ve requested to dedicate all available resources to supporting the clean-up operation in the interim."

These pellets are also dangerous to dogs as they contain a significant amount of PAHs, which are recognized for carcinogenic properties, and they often contain harmful substances including heavy metals, metalloids, and chemical elements.

An official representative for Southern Water stated, "We are collaborating with the Environment Agency and local council to look into the source of polymer pellets which have washed up on the shoreline. The inquiry is still in progress."

"The district council is leading the clean-up of the beach, using trained personnel with a specialized machinery to remove the beads. We are additionally assisting with the removal process."

"We’ve conducted water-quality sampling on the beach, which has shown no impact to the aquatic environment. This data has been provided with the local authorities and the regulatory body."

Regulatory officials has been reached out to for a statement.