A popular fishing and camping spot on the foothills of NSW’s Blue Mountains has been closed indefinitely after reports of a significant fish kill.
Lithgow City Council announced on Wednesday that it had closed busy Wallace Lake at Wallerawang to recreational activities until further notice.
In a statement, the council said it had issued the advice following an apparent fish kill occurring at the lake, located about 50km from Bathurst.
“The NSW Environment Protection Authority have been notified and advised the lake should be closed to recreational activities until further notice,” the council said.
“While the lake is privately owned, council does ask the public to heed the advice and cease accessing the water for any recreational activities.”
It was not immediately clear on Thursday whether the closure impacted just water-based activities on the lake or if land-based actions were also halted.
News of the of the apparent mass die-off at the popular recreational fishing spot quickly spread on local Facebook pages on Thursday.
“Does anyone know what’s going on at Lake Wallace … why all the fish are dead?” said one user.
Others noted the type of fish, stating: “They aren’t carp, they’re redfin and people should put them in the bin.”
Wallerawang Central Acclimatisation Society, which handles fish stock in the area, said it appeared only two species had so far been impacted.
“There is a large amount of redfin and some rainbow trout that have washed up along the bank since first reports on New Year’s Eve,” Wallerawang CAS said.
“At this stage there is no indication (of the reason), but potential environmental issues or EHN virus could be a cause.
“The risk will depend on the cause. Hopefully, we don’t see too much more deviation.”
EHN, or epizootic haematopoietic necrosis, is an infection known to spread among redfin fish in farm’, tanks, or ponds in NSW, Victoria, and South Australia.
Redfin is an invasive species known to host viral diseases that can sometimes be spread to local fish, according to Native Fish Australia.
Other commenters mentioned reports on local fishing networks of at least five rainbow trout, another introduced species, also being found dead.
A NSW Environment Protection Agency spokesperson said the government-run group had given advice to Lithgow City Council after reports of the kill.
Despite claims by the council the NSW EPA was investigating the incident, the spokesperson said the council would itself be managing the clean-up effort.
Lithgow City Council has been contacted for comment.