Sydney Water issued a warning recently about a sewage overflow around Katoomba Falls advising residents and tourists to avoid the area.
On September 20, a resident noticed a sign outside the Falls explaining the area "may be affected by sewage overflow". The sign has since been removed and a Sydney Water crew has confirmed there are "no issues".
The sign stated: "We are monitoring water quality and cleaning the area and apologise for any inconvenience. We advise you to avoid the area."
The Blue Mountains Gazette understands warning signs like these are installed when ground or waterways have been impacted by sewer surcharges resulting from a blockage in the wastewater system. The signs remain in place while clean-up is carried out, and as a precaution until ongoing water sampling confirms contamination has been cleared.
But a Sydney Water official said they had no record of an incident.
"Sydney Water is looking into the how and when the sign was erected," a Sydney Water media spokesman told the Gazette, adding in an official statement that they had, "no record of a recent incident impacting Katoomba Falls".
"A crew has attended the site [September 24] to confirm there are no issues and has removed the sign.
"Sydney Water takes its responsibility to protect public health and the environment seriously and we thank our customers for their on-going commitment to alerting us of issues they find."
The spokesman said a test was conducted at the site and had shown the water quality results were negative for sewage contamination.
A resident, who asked to remain anonymous, contacted the Gazette after the story appeared online saying "there has been an issue with ongoing sewage smell for many weeks".
When queried further the Sydney Water spokesman said they had "attended two separate incidents in the area in September. Environmental assessments confirmed Katoomba Falls hadn't been impacted". No further statement was issued.
A Blue Mountains City Council spokeswoman said "council's development monitoring team and environmental health team are aware of this matter ... council has followed this up with the Sydney Water field services team, who are working to resolve it".
Meanwhile NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service director David Crust has warned parks staff are preparing for a busy Spring season.
"We are expecting some of our most popular precincts to fill up quickly and urge people to plan ahead by visiting our website. Even if it's for a short walk check the site for updates. Many fire impacted areas remain closed and rainfall has also impacted access to some areas."
Mr Crust advised visitors to also check COVID safe rules for campsites. See: https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/camping-and-accommodation.