Scientists from The University of New South Wales, (UNSW Sydney) have conducted tests on the ‘beach blobs’ that recently washed up on the Northern Beaches and found that they are made up of a mixture of fatty acids and calcium, consistent with domestic soap scum.
Earlier this month, marble-sized balls washed up on nine of Sydney’s Northern Beaches. These beaches were closed by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) for investigation on the cause of the debris.
A team of chemists at UNSW, led by Professor Jon Beves, analysed the mysterious debris from Coogee beach and found that its contents were largely consistent with human-generated waste.
“These balls are mostly saturated fatty acids and calcium salts,” said Beves.
“They have a composition similar to soap scum, or lime soap, that forms when fatty acids commonly found in soaps react with hard water to form insoluble salts.”
With permission from the Northern Beaches Council, the UNSW scientists collected samples from Dee Why beach on 15 January.
These tests found that the recent set of balls are less complex than the spherical debris that they analysed a few months earlier.
“The balls are grey and much harder than the ones that washed up in Coogee, and much more homogenous,” said Beves.
“The balls we analysed were all visually very similar, unlike the ones from Coogee where each one was clearly a different mixture of components. But they also smelled disgusting.”
The NSW EPA is investigating the cause of the debris balls. The exact origin of the ball debris has not yet been determined.
The EPA is working with relevant government agencies to examine all potential sources, including land-based sources such as Sydney Water’s sewerage systems, stormwater systems or sea-borne sources such as a cruise ship or another vessel.
In parallel, the EPA is undertaking sampling of the debris balls and providing guidance to impacted councils on the safe management and disposal of the waste found on beaches.
For more information, www.epa.nsw.gov.au/
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