Popular Sydney beaches have closed after surgical face masks, plastic takeaway containers and air-conditioning ducts washed ashore from dozens of shipping containers which were lost at sea.
Randwick City Council has closed its beaches, which include Clovelly, Coogee and Maroubra, while crews undertake a mammoth clean-up effort.
Malabar Beach is believed to be one of the worst-affected by the debris.
Items have also washed up at Bondi and at Long Bay Beach, along with Magenta Beach and The Entrance on the Central Coast.
On Sunday morning the APL England, en route from Ningbo, China, to Melbourne, hit rough seas which caused 40 containers to fall overboard about 73 kilometres south-east of Sydney.
Containers have already reached shore on the Central Coast, washing up at Birdie Beach on the Central Coast.
Julius Gibson from the nearby suburb of Halekulani was walking along the beach when he stumbled across the twisted metal.
He said he was concerned about the environmental impacts the shipping accident would have.
"Seeing all the foam and random masks and stuff along the beach really isn't ideal for the environment," he said.
The ship's cargo manifest included building supplies, medical equipment and aircraft seats.
NSW Maritime's Alex Barrell said it was "too early at the moment to estimate the cost of this clean-up".
"This really does have some serious environmental impacts and that's why we're taking the clean-up so seriously," Mr Barrell said.
Council rangers and residents have been clearing beaches in the Randwick council area, which will remain closed until further notice, and authorities warn debris could continue to wash up for several days.
Swimmers and surfers have been advised not to enter the water due to the risk of larger submerged items still being in the ocean.
Volunteers from environmental group Australian Seabird Rescue are assisting in the clean-up, and branch coordinator Cathy Gilmore says animals are being exposed to dangerous material.
"It's not going to biodegrade, it's going to stay there for such a long time," she said.
"These animals out in the ocean are going to choose to eat a lot of it as food. They don't realise that what the ocean is providing isn't good for them."
Susie Casement, who visits Malabar Beach daily to pick up rubbish, said she cried after seeing the mess.
"I cried the first five minutes," she said.
"It's just devastating … this is stuff that's going to be forever."
The Singapore-flagged cargo ship docked in Brisbane and will be investigated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority to determine whether the containers were properly stacked and secured, and if any environmental regulations have been breached.
