A NSW Government website

Towamba River

Our water quality monitoring program has shown the Towamba River estuary to have excellent water quality. Find out more about the estuary and its unique features.

Towamba River is located on the far south coast of New South Wales. It is classed as a barrier river estuary and enters Twofold Bay via a permanently open entrance.

The Towamba River is the largest coastal river in the region and flows for 86 kilometres from the Great Dividing Range to the sea. It is dominated by smaller intermittently closed/open lakes and lagoons.

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 the Towamba River was completed over the 2008–09 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.

B

Algae

A

Water clarity

A

Overall grade

The report card shows the condition of the estuary was excellent with:

  • algae abundance graded good (B)
  • water clarity graded excellent (A)
  • overall estuary health graded excellent (A).

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.

Physical data

Physical characteristics

Estuary typeBarrier river
Latitude (ºS)–35.84
Longitude (ºE)150.19
Catchment area (km2)91.9
Estuary area (km2)1.8
Estuary volume (ML)1410.9
Average depth (m)1

Tidal exchange volume

Tidal exchange volume or tidal prism data is available for this estuary.

Tide stateFlow 
(106 m3)
Local tidal 
range (m)
Sydney Harbour 
tidal range (m)
Ebb flow0.960.861.09
Flood flow0.960.91.15

Notes: km2 = square kilometres; m = metres; m3 = cubic 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 Tomago River catchment is moderately disturbed, with almost 20% cleared for urban and rural residential areas and grazing at Tomakin, Mogo and Woodlands. About 80% of the catchment is forested.

Get involved

National and marine parks

Citizen science projects

  • The Far South Coast Conservation Management Network supports the local community to better manage native biodiversity. The network organises citizen science projects, provides information for private landowners, manages a local plant database, and coordinates events.

Community involvement

Aerial view of the Towamba River winding through dense greenery and forested areas, flowing into a larger body of water. The riverbanks are sandy, and small structures or buildings are visible near the shoreline. Rolling hills or low mountains are seen in the distance under a partly cloudy sky.

Aerial view of Towamba River estuary.

Local government management

Local councils manage estuaries within their area unless the estuary is attached to a marine park. Bega Valley Shire Council manage this estuary.

Threatened species

This catchment contains lowland grassy woodland, an endangered ecological community, and the threatened Bega wattle.

Find out more about the biodiversity in our estuaries.