Once again, small ball-shaped debris has appeared along the shores of Sydney, Australia, forcing the closure of nine beaches in the area while experts try to discover what they are and where they come from.
The gray and white balls, most the size of a marble, appear months after mysterious black balls appeared, prompting the closure of eight beaches in October. When authorities tested those balls, they determined they were likely the result of a sewage spill.
Now Northern Beaches Mayor Sue Heins says The last balls “could be anything.”
“We don't know at the moment what it is and that makes it even more worrying,” he told The Guardian.
Most debris balls are about the size of a marble.
Leaflet / Northern Beaches Council
“There's something obviously leaking or falling…floating around and being thrown around.”
In a statement, Northern Beaches council said it was working with the New South Wales Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to clear the mystery balls and send them for testing.
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Meanwhile, beachgoers were advised to avoid beaches at Manly, Dee Why, Long Reef, Queenscliff, Freshwater, North and South Curl Curl, North Steyne and North Narrabeen until further notice.
According to the BBC, the debris that appeared in October was widely reported as “tar balls” but tests found they contained everything from pesticides and hair to cooking oils, soap scum, veterinary medications, methamphetamine and more.
Last October, several beaches, including the iconic Bondi, east of central Sydney, were closed after thousands of black balls appeared on the shores.
Leaflet / Northern Beaches Council
The scientists said they resembled slicks of grease, oil and grease, often called fatbergs, which commonly form in sewage systems from man-made waste and can form when the substances build up and stick.
The EPA has advised the public not to handle debris balls and to report them when they are found.
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