Nangudga Lake is a small, shallow lagoon located on the south coast of New South Wales. The lake has intermittently open entrance that opens to Handkerchief Beach after significant rainfall events.
Water quality report card
As part of our water quality monitoring program we assess the water quality and ecosystem health of an estuary using a range of relevant indicators. We sample a subset of the estuaries between Wollongong and the Victorian border every 3 years. The most recent sampling in Nangudga Lake was completed over the 2020–21 summer, when 2 sites were sampled on a monthly basis.
This report card represents 2 water quality indicators that we routinely measure: the amount of algae present and water clarity. Low levels of these 2 indicators equate with good water quality.
Algae
Water clarity
Overall grade
The report card shows the condition of the estuary was poor with:
- algae abundance graded poor (D)
- water clarity graded poor (D)
- overall estuary health graded poor (D).
Grades for algae, water clarity and overall are represented as:
- A – excellent
- B – good
- C – fair
- D – poor
- E – very poor.
Go to estuary report cards to find out what each grade means, read our sampling, data analysis and reporting protocols, and find out how we calculate these grades.
We have monitored water quality in Nangudga Lake since 2011. This table shows the water quality grades for this estuary over that time.
| Year | Algae | Water clarity | Overall grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–12 | D | D | D |
| 2018–19 | D | E | E |
| 2019–20 | D | E | E |
Physical characteristics
| Estuary type | Lagoon |
|---|---|
| Latitude (ºS) | –36.25 |
| Longitude (ºE) | 150.14 |
| Catchment area (km2) | 9.5 |
| Estuary area (km2) | 0.7 |
| Estuary volume (ML) | 389 |
| Average depth (m) | 0.7 |
Notes: km2 = square kilometres; m = metres; ML = megalitres.
Water depth and survey data
Bathymetric and coastal topography data for this estuary are available in our data portal.
Land use
The catchment of Nangudga Lake south of Narooma is highly disturbed due to about 40% urban and 35% for grazing land use. About 15% of the catchment is forest.
National and marine parks
- Eurobodalla National Park is the largest conservation area in the Nangudga Lake catchment.
- This estuary flows into Batemans Marine Park.
Citizen science projects
- iNaturalist’s Plants of Eurobodalla is a citizen science project that monitors plants found in the Eurobodalla region.
Community involvement
- Eurobodalla Landcare is a volunteer network of 24 Landcare groups on the NSW south coast.
- The Coastwatchers Association is a community environmental and conservation group based on the south coast.
Local government management
Local councils manage estuaries within their area unless the estuary is attached to a marine park.
Eurobodalla Shire Council manages this estuary, which is located in Batemans Marine Park.
Threatened species
Unique vegetation communities of coastal saltmarsh and seagrass occur in this estuary.
Read more about the biodiversity in our estuaries.