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Southern Water is currently investigating after millions of polluted polymer pellets appeared on Camber Sands beach, raising fears of a potential "ecological disaster".

These biobeads could cause severe harm on ocean creatures, as stated by a local MP, with concerns that rare sea life, such as seabirds, small cetaceans, and marine mammals, might ingest them and perish.

The area's representative believes the beads may have been released from a nearby water treatment centre and has sent a letter 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 racing against time to clear the beads, filling dozens of bags with the synthetic debris, but the scale of the pollution spill is immense, and it is unlikely they will be able to remove all of them.

A representative from a environmental organization commented over the weekend, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever witnessed. It is polluted polymer. Marine animals will ingest small plastic items once they are in the ocean; they will draw in microorganisms, they will appear edible, effectively."

"Once they’ve eaten it, there's no turning back: they can’t get it out. They will float on the surface. It will form a layer which attracts plunging seabirds."

He added that the clean-up efforts have been draining. "Recently, I was out there removing the debris. We are trying to really piece together the timeline and the story for this horrendous event. It’s terrible."

"They are so small that from a a distance, the shoreline looks normal. But as soon as you approach closely, you see there are millions dark beads, nestled under seaweed. It’s an unachievable mission – helpers 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 seen of a polluted beach."

The elected official, who participated in the removal work, stated, "The huge number of plastic beads that have washed up here threatens an environmental catastrophe. These plastic items are deadly to marine life and wildlife, and we are already seeing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the beach."

"Local residents are working tirelessly to remove as many pellets as possible, but it’s a urgent effort. The water company must quickly determine if their local wastewater plants could be the origin of these pellets, and I’ve asked them to dedicate all available resources to supporting the clean-up operation in the meantime."

These pellets are additionally hazardous to dogs as they contain a high number of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they often contain toxins including heavy metals, metalloids, and bromine.

A spokesperson for Southern Water said, "We are working closely with the regulatory body and district authorities to investigate the cause of polymer pellets which have been deposited on the shoreline. This investigation work is ongoing."

"The district council is leading the clean-up of the shore, using specialists with a vehicle with suction equipment to extract the pellets. We are additionally assisting with the clean-up."

"We’ve conducted environmental testing on the coast, which has shown no impact to the aquatic environment. These results has been provided with the local authorities and the regulatory body."

Regulatory officials has been contacted for comment.