We like many others are appalled and shocked to hear that there has been a major plastic pollution incident on the Sussex coast, with millions of plastic beads or “nurdles” released into the sea through a faulty filter in the sewage system managed by Southern Water. Volunteers including our Head of Development Caroline Croft have been working against the clock on Camber Sands to do all they can to remove as many of the beads as possible from the beach.  The impact is still being assessed but the incident is undoubtedly an environmental catastrophe that may well take well over a year to remedy (source Rother District Council).

We look to those responsible for this situation to fully mitigate the impact of this incident on local wildlife as a matter of the utmost urgency and for the regulators to take this operational failure very seriously and take the necessary action. Such failures are in stark contrast to the outstanding work being done in Sussex by many to restore native ecosystems.