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The water company is conducting an inquiry after millions of contaminated plastic beads appeared on the shoreline at Camber, sparking fears of a possible "environmental catastrophe".

The plastic pellets could have a dire impact on ocean creatures, as stated by a regional representative, with apprehensions that rare sea life, including coastal birds, small cetaceans, and seals, might ingest them and die.

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

Camber Sands, located in the southeastern region, is a highly popular shoreline, known for unique sandy ecosystems and expansive areas of fine grains.

Local helpers have been racing against time to clear the pellets, collecting multiple sacks with the synthetic debris, but the extent of the pollution spill is immense, and it is improbable they will be able to clear every piece.

An expert from a environmental organization commented over the weekend, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever witnessed. It is contaminated plastic. Marine animals will consume small plastic items once they are in the sea; they will draw in microorganisms, they will smell like food, in essence."

"After ingestion, there's no turning back: they can’t get it out. They will remain buoyant. It will form a layer which attracts diving coastal birds."

The expert continued that the clean-up efforts have been exhausting. "Recently, 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 awful."

"They are so small that from a a distance, the shoreline appears unaffected. But as soon as you get close up, 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 cannot remove every pellet. It is the worst I have ever encountered of a contaminated shoreline."

The local MP, who participated in the removal work, remarked, "The huge number of polymer pellets that have appeared on this shore threatens an environmental catastrophe. These biobeads are lethal to marine life and wildlife, and we are already seeing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the beach."

"Community members are working tirelessly to clear away as many pellets as possible, but it’s a race against time. Southern Water must quickly determine if their local wastewater plants could be the origin of these biobeads, and I’ve requested to commit every possible asset to supporting the clean-up operation in the interim."

These pellets are also dangerous to dogs as they hold a high number of PAHs, which are known to have cancer-causing traits, and they often contain harmful substances including lead, antimony, and bromine.

An official representative for Southern Water stated, "We are collaborating with the Environment Agency and district authorities to investigate the cause of polymer pellets which have washed up on the shoreline. This investigation work is ongoing."

"Local officials is leading the clean-up of the beach, using specialists with a specialized machinery to extract the beads. We are additionally assisting with the removal process."

"We’ve conducted water-quality sampling on the beach, which has revealed no effect to the aquatic environment. These results has been provided with the local authorities and the Environment Agency."

Regulatory officials has been contacted for comment.