Authorities investigating mystery debris balls that recently closed beaches in Sydney and on the south coast have determined they likely originated from Sydney Water’s land-based sewage treatment network, the NSW Environment Protection Authority says. “The development comes after a comprehensive scientific and technical investigation found similarities between the makeup of the debris balls and samples taken from several of Sydney Water’s major wastewater treatment plants, including those at Malabar and Bondi,” the EPA said in a statement on Friday. Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter Prof Stuart Khan, head of civil engineering at the University of