Heavy Metals Found On Plastic Pellets Washed Up On Sussex Beach

Heavy metals including lead, arsenic and cadmium have been detected on plastic pellets that washed up in their millions along the Sussex coastline.

Scientists tested 200 of the pellets – known as bio-beads – collected from Camber Sands and found they contained several heavy metals that could pose a risk to wildlife.

The beads are believed to have come from a spill at Southern Water’s Eastbourne wastewater treatment works more than a month ago.

Researchers say that if birds eat the pellets, or feed on fish that have swallowed them, the metals could affect their nervous systems.

Studies indicate that some metals can be released inside the digestive system, potentially causing harm.

Volunteers and Southern Water teams have been carrying out clean-up operations since the spill, while Sussex Wildlife Trust has been working to remove the beads from sensitive areas such as Rye Harbour Nature Reserve.

The trust warns that wildlife may mistake the small, buoyant pellets for food and is calling for faster action to remove them from both beaches and wastewater sites.

Experts also note that if the beads begin to break down in dunes and soil, heavy metals could be absorbed by plants.

Southern Water has previously said the beads used at Eastbourne are “non-toxic, non-hazardous and chemically stable.”

The company and the Environment Agency are both carrying out investigations into the incident.