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The water company is conducting an inquiry after a vast number of contaminated plastic beads appeared on the shoreline at Camber, sparking fears of a possible "ecological disaster".

The plastic pellets could cause severe harm on ocean creatures, according to a regional representative, with apprehensions that rare sea life, including seabirds, small cetaceans, and seals, might ingest them and perish.

A local official suspects the beads may have been released from a local filtration facility and has sent a letter to the water company's chief executive, requesting an account.

Camber Sands, situated in the southeastern region, is one of England’s most beloved beaches, featuring unique sandy ecosystems and vast stretches of fine grains.

Volunteers have been working urgently to remove the pellets, collecting 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.

An expert from a plastic pollution campaign group remarked over the weekend, "This represents the most severe contamination incident I have ever seen. It is polluted polymer. Marine animals will ingest tiny synthetic pieces once they are in the sea; they will draw in microorganisms, 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 plunging seabirds."

The expert continued that the clean-up efforts have been draining. "Yesterday, I was on site removing the debris. We are trying to accurately reconstruct the timeline and the details for this devastating incident. It’s terrible."

"They are so small that from a very long way off, the beach looks normal. But as soon as you approach closely, 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 won’t be able to get rid of them all. It is the most severe I have ever encountered of a contaminated shoreline."

The elected official, who participated in the removal work, stated, "The huge number of polymer pellets that have appeared on this shore risks an environmental catastrophe. These biobeads are lethal to ocean and land animals, and we are already seeing more dead seals, fish and porpoises on the coast."

"Community members are working tirelessly to remove as many beads as possible, but it’s a urgent effort. The water company must quickly determine if their nearby treatment facilities could be the source of these biobeads, and I’ve requested to commit every possible asset to aiding the removal efforts in the meantime."

The beads are also dangerous to dogs as they hold a high number of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are known to have carcinogenic properties, and they frequently include harmful substances including lead, antimony, and bromine.

A spokesperson for the water company stated, "We are working closely with the Environment Agency and local council to look into the cause of plastic beads which have washed up on the shoreline. The inquiry is still in progress."

"Local officials is overseeing removal of the beach, using specialists with a specialized machinery to extract 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. This data has been shared with the local authorities and the regulatory body."

The Environment Agency has been contacted for a statement.