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

The plastic pellets could have a dire impact on marine life, according to a local MP, with concerns that rare sea life, such as seabirds, porpoises, and seals, 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 top official, demanding an account.

This coastal area, located in the southeastern region, is a highly popular shoreline, known for unique sandy ecosystems and vast stretches of fine grains.

Local helpers have been racing against time to clear the pellets, filling 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 remove all of them.

An expert from a environmental organization remarked over the weekend, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever seen. It is contaminated plastic. Sea creatures will ingest small plastic items once they are in the ocean; they will draw in microorganisms, they will appear edible, 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 exhausting. "Yesterday, I was out there removing the debris. We are trying to really piece together the sequence of events and the details for this devastating incident. It’s awful."

"The pellets are minuscule that from a a distance, the beach looks normal. But as soon as you get close up, you see there are countless dark beads, 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 polluted beach."

The elected official, who participated in the clean-up efforts, stated, "The immense quantity of polymer pellets that have appeared on this shore threatens an ecological disaster. These biobeads are lethal to marine life and wildlife, and we are observing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the beach."

"Community members 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 pellets, and I’ve requested to commit every possible asset to supporting the clean-up operation in the interim."

These pellets are also dangerous to canines as they contain a significant amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they frequently include toxins such as heavy metals, metalloids, and bromine.

An official representative for Southern Water said, "We are collaborating with the Environment Agency and local council to look into the cause of plastic beads which have washed up on the shoreline. This investigation work is still in progress."

"Local officials is overseeing removal of the shore, using specialists with a specialized machinery to extract the beads. We are also supporting with the removal process."

"We have performed environmental testing on the beach, which has revealed no effect to the aquatic environment. This data has been shared with the local authorities and the regulatory body."

The Environment Agency has been contacted for comment.