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The water company is conducting an inquiry after millions of polluted polymer pellets appeared on Camber Sands beach, raising fears of a potential "ecological disaster".

The plastic pellets could cause severe harm on ocean creatures, as stated by a local MP, with concerns that rare sea life, including seabirds, porpoises, and seals, might consume them and die.

A local official suspects the beads may have been released from a nearby water treatment centre and has sent a letter to the water company's chief executive, demanding an explanation.

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

Local helpers have been working urgently to clear the beads, filling dozens of bags with the synthetic debris, but the scale of the contamination event is immense, and it is unlikely they will be able to remove all of them.

An expert from a environmental organization remarked recently, "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 sea; they will attract algae, they will smell like food, in essence."

"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."

The expert continued that the clean-up efforts have been exhausting. "Yesterday, I was on site removing the debris. We are trying to accurately reconstruct the timeline and the details for this horrendous event. 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 countless dark beads, hidden among marine plants. It’s an impossible task – helpers 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 local MP, who participated in the removal work, stated, "The huge number of plastic beads that have washed up here risks an ecological disaster. These plastic items are deadly to ocean and land animals, and we are already seeing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the beach."

"Community members are working tirelessly to clear away as many beads 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 dedicate all available resources to aiding the removal efforts in the interim."

The beads are also dangerous to canines as they hold a high number of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have cancer-causing traits, and they often contain harmful substances including heavy metals, metalloids, and chemical elements.

An official representative for Southern Water said, "We are working closely with the Environment Agency and district authorities to investigate the source of polymer pellets which have washed up on Camber Beach. This investigation work is ongoing."

"The district council is overseeing removal of the shore, using specialists with a vehicle with suction equipment to remove the beads. We are additionally assisting with the clean-up."

"We have performed 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 reached out to for comment.