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The water company is conducting an inquiry after a vast number of polluted polymer pellets appeared on the shoreline at Camber, raising fears of a potential "ecological disaster".

The plastic pellets 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 perish.

A local official suspects the pellets may have been spilled from a local filtration facility and has written to the water company's chief executive, requesting an account.

This coastal area, situated in the southeastern region, is one of England’s most beloved beaches, featuring unique sandy ecosystems and vast stretches of fine grains.

Local helpers have been working urgently to clear the beads, filling multiple sacks with the plastic waste, but the scale of the contamination event is vast, and it is unlikely they will be able to remove all of them.

A representative from a environmental organization commented recently, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever witnessed. It is contaminated plastic. Marine animals will ingest tiny synthetic pieces once they are in the ocean; they will attract algae, they will smell like food, in essence."

"Once they’ve eaten it, that’s it: they cannot expel it. They will remain buoyant. It will form a layer which attracts diving coastal birds."

He added that the clean-up efforts have been exhausting. "Recently, I was out there removing the debris. We are trying to accurately reconstruct the sequence of events and the details for this devastating incident. It’s terrible."

"The pellets are minuscule that from a a distance, the shoreline looks normal. But as soon as you approach closely, you see there are countless black pellets, nestled under seaweed. It’s an unachievable mission – volunteers have been raking for days, and they will keep at it, but we won’t be able to get rid of them all. It is the worst I have ever seen of a contaminated shoreline."

The elected official, who participated in the clean-up efforts, stated, "The huge number of polymer pellets that have appeared on this shore threatens an environmental catastrophe. These biobeads are deadly to marine life and wildlife, and we are observing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the coast."

"Community members are working tirelessly to remove as many beads 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 pellets, and I’ve asked them to dedicate all available resources to aiding the removal efforts in the meantime."

These pellets are additionally hazardous to dogs as they contain a significant amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they often contain harmful substances including lead, metalloids, and bromine.

A spokesperson for Southern Water stated, "We are working closely with the Environment Agency and local council to look into the source of plastic beads which have washed up on Camber Beach. This investigation work is still in progress."

"Local officials is overseeing removal of the shore, 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. These results has been provided with the district council and the Environment Agency."

Regulatory officials has been reached out to for a statement.