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Please note our Whitianga office will be closed to the public on Tuesday, 16 September and Wednesday, 17 September 2025. You can still contact our staff on freephone 0800 800 401 or via an online form.

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Monitoring lakes and wetlands in the Waikato

Our region's lakes vary from Lake Taupō, which has very high water quality, to our shallow peat lakes, many of which have been altered or even drained completely.

Our region also has many wetland areas, including three of international importance - Whangamarino, Kopouatai and the Firth of Thames. Protection of our remaining wetland areas is critical as few remain and all are sensitive to changes in water flow, water quality, neighbouring land use and pests.

Waikato Regional Council regularly monitors and reports on our region's lake and wetland resources and the pressure they face.

Our lakes and wetlands indicators summarise the results of our science and monitoring programmes, and provide a holistic report on the state of the Waikato region's environment. 

We regularly monitor Lake Taupō's water quality at a number of sites in and around the lake. 

Water quality measures