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The water company is conducting an inquiry after millions of contaminated plastic beads appeared on Camber Sands beach, raising fears of a possible "ecological disaster".

The plastic pellets could cause severe harm on marine life, according to a local MP, with apprehensions that rare sea life, such as coastal birds, small cetaceans, and seals, might ingest them and die.

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

This coastal area, situated in the southeastern region, is a highly popular shoreline, known for rare dune habitat and expansive areas of golden sand.

Volunteers have been racing against time to clear the pellets, collecting dozens of bags with the synthetic debris, but the scale of the pollution spill is vast, and it is unlikely they will be able to remove all of them.

An expert 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 tiny synthetic pieces once they are in the ocean; they will attract algae, they will appear edible, 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 diving coastal birds."

He added 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 details for this devastating incident. It’s terrible."

"The pellets are minuscule that from a a distance, the shoreline appears unaffected. But as soon as you approach closely, you see there are countless dark beads, nestled under seaweed. It’s an impossible task – helpers have been working tirelessly, 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 polymer pellets that have washed up here risks an ecological disaster. These plastic items are lethal to marine life and wildlife, and we are observing increased mortality among marine species on the coast."

"Local residents are laboring diligently to clear away as many beads as possible, but it’s a race against time. The water company must urgently establish if their local wastewater plants could be the origin of these pellets, and I’ve asked them to commit every possible asset to supporting the clean-up operation in the meantime."

The beads are additionally hazardous to dogs as they contain a significant amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have cancer-causing traits, and they often contain toxins including lead, antimony, and bromine.

A spokesperson for Southern Water stated, "We are collaborating with the Environment Agency and district authorities to look into the source of plastic beads which have been deposited on Camber Beach. The inquiry is still in progress."

"Local officials is leading the clean-up of the beach, 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 revealed no effect to environmental water quality. These results has been shared with the district council and the regulatory body."

The Environment Agency has been reached out to for comment.