A NSW Government website

Currambene Creek

Our water quality monitoring program has shown Currambene Creek to have good water quality. Find out more about the estuary and its unique features.

Currambene Creek is classed as a barrier river estuary with an intermittently closed entrance. It is located on the south coast of New South Wales.

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 Currambene Creek was completed over the 2017–18 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

B

Overall grade

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

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

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.

A view of Currambene Creek meeting the sea surrounded by the village of Huskisson and Callala Beach

Aerial view of Currambene Creek

Local government management

Local councils manage estuaries within their area unless the estuary is attached to a marine park. 

Currambene Creek estuary is managed by Shoalhaven City Council(link is external) and the Jervis Bay Marine Park(link is external).

Threatened species

Currambene Creek estuary is an important feeding and roosting area for wading and migratory birds, such as the Australian bittern(link is external) and black‑tailed godwit(link is external).

Read more about the biodiversity in our estuaries(link is external).