The sea at Chennai’s popular Marina beach is churning up waves of white froth. Residents of the area have faced torrential rains this past weekend, and on Monday woke up to a pungent smell in the air coming from the beach.

(Image: © RParthibhan/AP/Shutterstock)
Experts believe that toxic chemicals and untreated sewage like detergent deposits in rivers and canals mix with the seawater and get whipped up by the strong winds to form foam. This means that the water in the area is extremely polluted and very harmful to the health of the people living around the beach.
This is yet another sign that the environment and our Earth is in trouble and that human beings are largely to blame since we do not take more care of Mother Nature, continuing to throw harmful chemicals and waste out into the sea.
Children in the area have been seen playing with the foam, even though it is believed to be very dangerous and the fishermen have also been affected since they are unable to fish due to the contaminated water. This is costing local fishermen their livelihood of about Rs. 500 per day.
Although the foam occurs each year during the monsoons in Chennai, the situation is much more serious this year with the foam occurring in huge quantities and stretching away from the beach up to the houses close by. Stay tuned for more updates.
Written by: Disha Mirchandani. Disha is a former lawyer turned freelance content writer. She is a fitness enthusiast and amateur aerialist with her own fitness photo-blog as well.