The shores of England’s Tees Valley have been especially packed lately — not by tourists, but by thousands of blue rubber balls.
It turns out the balls, which have an abrasive coating, come from a nearby power station, which uses them to clean the system’s pipes, according to Metro. They’re rarely released into the ocean, except when there’s a build up of pressure.
EDF, which operates the power station, claims they didn’t release the balls. Locals think strong winds and currents may be to blame.
While the balls are biodegradable, they still pose a threat to local wildlife. Beach cleaning groups along the coast have been picking them up, but in the meantime, people are being asked to do what they can do to help stop pollution in the sea.