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Lake Macquarie () is
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
's largest coastal
lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...
. Located in the
City of Lake Macquarie The City of Lake Macquarie is a local government area (LGA) in the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city on 7 September 1984. It is adjacent to the city of Newcastle and is part of the Greater Newcastle area. ...
and Central Coast Council local government areas in the
Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
and Central Coast regions of
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, it covers an area of and is connected to the
Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, who in 1642 wa ...
by a short channel. Most of the residents of the
City of Lake Macquarie The City of Lake Macquarie is a local government area (LGA) in the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city on 7 September 1984. It is adjacent to the city of Newcastle and is part of the Greater Newcastle area. ...
live near the shores of the lagoon. Lake Macquarie is twice as large as
Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a ria, natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove River, Lane ...
and is the largest coastal salt water
lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...
in the Southern Hemisphere. It is slightly smaller than Port Stephens, which is about to the northeast of the lagoon.


History

Aboriginal people of the Awabakal nation lived in the area surrounding what is now known as Lake Macquarie for thousands of years. The name ''Awaba'', which means "a plain surface" was used to describe the lagoon. There are several significant sites in and around this country. Including; Butterfly Cave, Glenrock State Reserve and Pulbah Island Nature Reserve. Lake Macquarie was first encountered by Europeans, in July 1800, by Captain William Reid, who had been tasked with obtaining a cargo of coal from the outcropping seams on the southern side of the
Hunter River Hunter River may refer to: *Hunter River (New South Wales), Australia *Hunter River (Western Australia) *Hunter River, New Zealand *Hunter River (Prince Edward Island), Canada **Hunter River, Prince Edward Island, community on Hunter River, Canada ...
. Mistaking Moon Island for Nobby's and the entrance to Lake Macquarie at Swansea Heads for the mouth of the Hunter River, he obtained his cargo of coal from a seam outcropping in the southern headland at the lagoon's entrance—a headland since known as ‘Reid’s Mistake’—and so accidentally revealed to the settlers both the lagoon and the coastal coalfields of the area. Since the location seemed to match the description given to him, he presumed that he had reached the Hunter. It was only upon his return to Sydney that Reid found that he had not travelled far enough north to have reached the Hunter River. The name "Reid's Mistake" was used for the lagoon until 1826, when it was renamed in honour of Governor
Lachlan Macquarie Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General Lachlan Macquarie, Companion of the Order of the Bath, CB (; ; 31 January 1762 – 1 July 1824) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Scotland. Macquarie served as the fifth Gove ...
.


Geography and environment

The lagoon is of irregular shape and the land separating it from the ocean is only a few kilometres wide along most of its length. While there are several small, sandy, low-level
islets An islet ( ) is generally a small island. Definitions vary, and are not precise, but some suggest that an islet is a very small, often unnamed, island with little or no vegetation to support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and ...
in the lagoon, some of which are grouped near the mouth, Pulbah Island, located south of
Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...
is a large island offering views from rocky cliffs. Lake Macquarie is connected to the sea by two channels, Swansea Channel and Lake Entrance. Swansea Channel is approximately wide and long. It joins Lake Entrance, which measures approximately wide by at the Swansea bridges. The bridges can lift to allow yachts and other larger pleasure craft into and out of the lagoon. There is no point on the coast from which the entire expanse of the lagoon and its foreshore may be seen. However, a good view can be obtained from lookouts in the nearby Watagan Mountains.


Important Bird Area

The remnant and fragmented
eucalypt Eucalypt is any woody plant with Capsule (fruit), capsule fruiting bodies belonging to one of seven closely related genera (of the tribe Eucalypteae) found across Australia: ''Eucalyptus'', ''Corymbia'', ''Angophora'', ''Stockwellia'', ''Allosyn ...
forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...
s on the southern margins of the lagoon have been identified by
BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...
as a 121 km2
Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
(IBA) because they support significant numbers of
endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...
swift parrot The swift parrot (''Lathamus discolor''), also known by the palawa kani name swift waylitja, is a species of broad-tailed parrot, found only in southeastern Australia. The species breeds in Tasmania during the summer and migrates north to south ...
s and regent honeyeaters in years when the swamp mahoganies and other favoured trees are flowering.
Masked owl Masked owl or masked-owl refers to various owls in the genus ''Tyto'', including: * Australian masked owl (''Tyto novaehollandiae'') ** Tasmanian masked owl (''Tyto novaehollandiae castanops'') * Golden masked owl (''Tyto aurantia'') * Manus ma ...
s and
osprey The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...
s regularly nest within the IBA.


Pulbah Island

The Pulbah Island Nature Reserve is a protected
nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...
that is located in the southern part of the lagoon. Being approximately long the island is, by far, the largest island in Lake Macquarie. Pulbah Island is managed by the
NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is a directorate of the New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment and responsible for managing more than 890 national parks and reserves, covering over 7.5 million hectares of land ac ...
. There are no permanent structures on the island and it is uninhabited although in the past a maintenance cottage existed on the island. ''Pulbah'' is an Australian indigenous Awabakal word meaning "island". Weed infestation on the island is problematic. Local efforts have been made to remove and control weeds species such as
Bitou bush ''Osteospermum moniliferum'' (synonym ''Chrysanthemoides monilifera'') is an evergreen flowering shrub or small tree in the daisy family, Asteraceae. It is native to southern Africa, ranging through South Africa and Lesotho to Mozambique and Zimb ...
, ''
Lantana ''Lantana'' () is a genus of about 150 species of perennial plant, perennial flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are native to tropics, tropical regions of the Americas and Africa but exist as an introduced species in num ...
'' and
Wandering Jew The Wandering Jew (occasionally referred to as the Eternal Jew, a calque from German ) is a mythical immortal man whose legend began to spread in Europe in the 13th century. In the original legend, a Jew who taunted Jesus on the way to the Cruc ...
. It also has native trees such as spotted gum.
Kangaroo Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...
s and
koala The koala (''Phascolarctos cinereus''), sometimes inaccurately called the koala bear, is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. It is the only Extant taxon, extant representative of the Family (biology), family ''Phascolar ...
s were introduced to the island during the early 1900s, but they have been extirpated by illegal hunting.
Goanna A goanna is any one of several species of lizard of the genus ''Monitor lizard, Varanus'' found in Australia and Southeast Asia. Around 70 species of ''Varanus'' are known, 25 of which are found in Australia. This varied group of carnivorous r ...
s are common on the island. From the island there are clear views of the Wangi Wangi peninsula as well as the Eraring, Munmorah and Vales Point power stations. The island has cliff faces on the west and south sides as well as the south east side. The rest of the island is edged by sandy beaches although the density of vegetation ensures that there is minimal beach at high tide. The east side of the island has a slight bay that is commonly frequented by leisure boats. Camping on the island is not permitted. Bushwalking and picnicking are permitted. Pulbah Island is also a sacred site in Aboriginal culture for the Awabakal people and was declared an Aboriginal place in 1982.


Environmental management

In 1983, the State Pollution Control Commission undertook an investigation into the causes of poor water quality in the lagoon. The final report of this investigation, known as "The Environmental Audit of Lake Macquarie", identified the primary causes of concern, highlighting the major problems of sedimentation and nutrient enrichment. Accelerated sedimentation levels were estimated at per annum and nutrient levels had shown a substantial increase as a result of urbanisation. A study prepared for Lake Macquarie City Council in 1995 estimated that sediment loads to Lake Macquarie were per annum, which was very different from the sediment loads prior to European development, estimated at per annum. Two creek systems, Cockle and Dora Creeks, were estimated to be contributing and per annum respectively. In 1998, the then NSW Premier,
Bob Carr Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947) is an Australian retired politician and journalist who served as the 39th Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, as the leader of the New South Wales Labor Party, New South Wales branch of the A ...
, announced the formation of a task force under the chairmanship of
Clean Up Australia Clean Up Australia Limited is a not-for-profit Australian environmental conservation organisation. It is registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission. Clean Up Australia Limited has sponsored a yearly Clean Up Aus ...
founder, Ian Kiernan. The report of the task force, known as the "Integrated Estuary and Catchment Management Framework" was accepted by the NSW State Cabinet in February 1999. The report recommended a unique institutional arrangement for implementation through the creation of the Office of the Lake Macquarie and Catchment Coordinator. This cooperative-based arrangement was a joint initiative of
City of Lake Macquarie The City of Lake Macquarie is a local government area (LGA) in the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city on 7 September 1984. It is adjacent to the city of Newcastle and is part of the Greater Newcastle area. ...
and the former Wyong Shire local government areas (which is now Central Coast Council) in 1998, as well as the
NSW Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the executive state government of New South Wales, Australia. The government comprises 11 portfolios, led by a ministerial department and supported by several agencies. Th ...
, with major funding provided by these partners. To oversee the implementation process, a committee known as the Lake Macquarie Project Management Committee was appointed by the then Minister of Land and Water Conservation. The Committee would consist of representatives of both councils; community; regional directors of relevant government departments and three ex-officio members. The action plan, known as the Lake Macquarie Improvement Plan has an emphasis on integration, both physically and administratively, as well as promoting a whole of government approach and strong community involvement. The physical works concentrated on treating the cause of the water problems in the lagoon by tackling
stormwater runoff Surface runoff (also known as overland flow or terrestrial runoff) is the unconfined flow of water over the ground surface, in contrast to '' channel runoff'' (or ''stream flow''). It occurs when excess rainwater, stormwater, meltwater, or other ...
within the catchment. Again, the emphasis adopted included the use of soft engineering and the restoration of natural ecological processes where possible. After six years in operation, the Lake Macquarie Project Management Committee entered its third project phase in 2006. A series of water quality indicators are used to monitor and quantify the water quality improvements observed by the community. The lagoon body generally has low nutrient concentrations, good water clarity and excellent dissolved oxygen levels. Activities that reduce the amount of sediments and nutrients washing into the Lake via stormwater run-off have assisted in improving water quality in Lake Macquarie. These activities include the construction of wetlands, the installation of stormwater treatment devices, bush regeneration and an increased awareness by the local community. Recreational fishing is improving as fish stocks respond to the recent removal of commercial fishing and the significant increase in water quality that has come from a concerted environmental program undertaken by the state government and council. Since settlement lagoon-bed
silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension (chemistry), suspension with water. Silt usually ...
has increased in some areas due to unsealed roads, road shoulders and diffuse effects of urbanisation, however the quantity is far less than in nearby Lake Munmorah, and swimming is quite tolerable. Average water depth is approximately , reaching a maximum depth of approximately east of Pulbah Island. The lagoon has an increased level of mercury.


Recreation

Recreational fishing, boating, kayaking and water skiing are all popular recreational activities on the lagoon. The popularity of kayaking is increasing.
Sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...
and
yacht racing Yacht racing is a Sailing (sport), sailing sport involving sailing yachts and larger sailboats, as distinguished from dinghy racing, which involves open boats. It is composed of multiple yachts, in direct competition, racing around a course mark ...
are also popular with the lagoon boasting many yacht clubs including: * Belmont 16 ft Sailing Club * Lake Macquarie Yacht Club, Belmont * Mannering Park Amateur Sailing Club * Marmong Pt Sailing Club * Royal Motor Yacht Club of NSW,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
* Speers Point Amateur Sailing Club * South Lake Macquarie Amateur Sailing Club * Teralba Amateur Sailing Club * Toronto Amateur Sailing Club
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
* Wangi RSL Amateur Sailing Club


References


External links

* *
Lake Macquarie navigation chart
{{Authority control Macquarie * Islands of New South Wales Important Bird Areas of New South Wales Protected areas established in 1970 Sacred islands