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The water company is currently investigating after millions of polluted polymer pellets appeared on Camber Sands beach, raising worries of a potential "ecological disaster".

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

The area's representative suspects the pellets may have been spilled from a local filtration facility and has written to the water company's chief executive, demanding an account.

This coastal area, situated in the southeastern region, is a highly popular shoreline, featuring rare dune habitat and vast stretches of fine grains.

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

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

"After ingestion, that’s it: 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 draining. "Yesterday, I was out there cleaning it up. We are trying to really piece together the timeline and the story for this devastating incident. It’s awful."

"The pellets are minuscule that from a a distance, the beach appears unaffected. But as soon as you get close up, you see there are millions dark beads, hidden among marine plants. It’s an impossible task – helpers have been raking for days, and they will continue to rake, but we cannot remove every pellet. It is the worst I have ever seen of a contaminated shoreline."

The local MP, who participated in the clean-up efforts, remarked, "The huge number of plastic beads that have appeared on this shore threatens an ecological disaster. These plastic items are deadly to ocean and land animals, 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 quickly determine if their nearby treatment facilities could be the origin of these biobeads, and I’ve asked them to commit every possible asset to supporting the clean-up operation in the interim."

These pellets are additionally hazardous to dogs as they contain a significant amount of PAHs, which are recognized for carcinogenic properties, and they often contain harmful substances including lead, metalloids, and bromine.

A spokesperson 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 Camber Beach. This investigation work is ongoing."

"Local officials is leading the clean-up of the shore, using trained personnel with a specialized machinery to extract the beads. We are additionally assisting with the clean-up."

"We have performed water-quality sampling on the coast, which has shown no impact to the aquatic environment. This data has been shared with the local authorities and the Environment Agency."

Regulatory officials has been reached out to for comment.