MP calls for ban on ‘biobeads’ at sewage works after devastating Camber Sands spillage

The use of tiny, toxic plastic beads at sewage works should be banned nationwide, an MP and wildlife experts have said after a devastating spill at an internationally important nature reserve.

Hundreds of millions of “biobeads” washed up on Camber Sands beach in East Sussex last month, after a failure at a Southern Water sewage treatment works caused a catastrophic spill. This caused distress and alarm for local residents and conservationists, as not only are the beads unsightly, but they pose a deadly threat to wildlife.

Scientists at Kings’ College London tested the beads and found they contained heavy metals including lead and arsenic.

The local Labour MP, Helena Dollimore, is on Thursday launching a campaign with the Wildlife Trusts to get the use of these beads banned for good. T