Black, ball-shaped debris washes ashore on Sydney's Coogee Beach prompting closure and investigation by Randwick City Council - ABC News

By Tony Ibrahim

By Jesse Hyland

Topic:Pollution

Coogee Beach has been closed after black, ball-shaped debris was discovered by lifeguards.

Randwick City Council is arranging for the material to be removed and is inspecting nearby beaches.

The beach will be closed until further notice as the council investigates.

Hundreds of mysterious black spheres have washed up on Coogee Beach, raising safety concerns and leading to the closure of the popular eastern Sydney beach.

Randwick City Council announced the beach would be closed until further notice while the suspected "tar balls" are cleared and their origin is investigated.

Mayor Dylan Parker told ABC News Breakfast that the council was not sure what is washing up on Coogee Beach.

"This is the first time that an incident such as this that we're aware of has happened in the Randwick council area," he said.

Environmental officers have collected samples of the contaminant for testing. (ABC News: Digby Werthmuller)

Cr Parker said environmental authorities had been notified and teams worked through the night to clear the debris.

On Tuesday afternoon, Gordons Bay north of Coogee was closed by council after the debris was found on the beach.

He said the debris "may be tar balls" which are "dark ball-shaped objects which occur when they're in rough seas and when oil comes into contact with debris or water and is typically the result of oil spills or seepage".

"If it is made of oil it can be carcinogenic. We're strongly advising people just not to touch them."

The mayor said he isn't aware of recent oil spills nearby.

The black spheres washed up on the sand of Gordon's Bay, which is close to Coogee Beach. (ABC News: Digby Werthmuller)

NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said no evidence had emerged suggesting other nearby beaches were affected.

"The advice is people shouldn't be swimming at Coogee, it's closed," she said.

"The other beaches are fine, but we hope to get to the bottom of what is an usual situation as quickly as possible."

Ms Sharpe said Randwick City Council was working with the Environment Protection Authority to determine the source of the contamination.

The council is asking people to avoid Coogee Beach until further notice. (ABC News: Digby Werthmuller)

Environmental officers have collected samples of the contaminant for testing.

"We want to clean this up as soon as possible, but we need to understand where it's from, we need to understand what's in it, what are the risks here," Ms Sharpe said.

"As soon as we know, we'll be sharing it with everyone."

Local residents Tina Stamell and Dan Forgette, who swim at the beach every morning, were disappointed by the closure.

"It's a bit frustrating, but I understand," Ms Stamell said.

Ms Stamell has been swimming at the beach for about 40 years and said she had never seen anything like the black spheres before.

"We've seen a lot of debris from all [of] the storms," she said.

"But this is something unusual, very unusual."

Mr Forgette said the pair came down to the beach this morning to see if the debris "had cleared up".

"I guess they [Randwick City Council] don't know what contaminants are in there and when it's safe to go in again," he said.

"I guess it's a precaution well-needed."

Tina Stamell and Dan Forgette swim at the beach every morning. (ABC News: Myles Houlbrook-Walk)

Council workers continued clearing the beach of the debris this morning. Some were seen wearing face masks.

The council is asking people to avoid Coogee Beach until further notice.

The mayor said the beach would reopen when the authorities say it is safe to do so.