Environmental organizations have raised concerns over nurdles, which are tiny pellets used in the manufacture of plastics, suddenly washing up mainly on the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast in Sheffield and Ballito.
They say this poses a threat to the health of marine life, humans, and the delicate balance of the environment.
The founder of the non-profit organization Litter4Tokens, Clare Swithenbank-Bowman, has encouraged communities to help clean the beaches.
“They are being consumed and mistaken as eggs, so fish are eating them. We eat the fish; marine life, including whales, are consuming them and clogging their intestines. So, it is a catastrophic situation we find ourselves in because seals are washing up, causing starvation in marine life.”
