Fresh Pond
Plymouth County, MassachusettsView mapDirections
MassDEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Fresh Pond. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Habitat alterations
- 51 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Fresh Pond in Plymouth County, Massachusetts has water-quality measurements published by MassDEP, shown here as reported. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 9.2 µg/L.
Fresh Pond is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Plymouth County, Massachusetts with an estimated average depth of about 51 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available. Compared to the 11 other monitored lakes in Plymouth County, Fresh Pond ranks #7 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, MassDEP, last sampled 2018-09-25. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLimited data
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Fresh Pond is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for habitat alterations, mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Fresh Pond is safe to swim in today is a call for the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Fresh Pond
These are the measurements MassDEP publishes for Fresh Pond, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
No clarity data. Chlorophyll-a 9.2 µg/L. TSI 52.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | No reading How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. | |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 9.2µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 52 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Fresh Pond
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~51 ft est.
Public access
Yes
Listed by MassDEP
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Massachusetts has not published bathymetry for Fresh Pond.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
5 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
42 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
20 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
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Stays near Fresh Pond
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Fishing Fresh Pond
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Fresh Pond is a man-made reservoir impounded by the The Arm Pond Dam on the Tributary to Beaver Dam Brook, 14 ft tall.
- Normal storage
- 22.17 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 87.2 ac-ft
- Hazard class
- Undetermined
- Owner
- Unknown
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MA01030 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.85 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Fresh Pond is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life, Fish consumption.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MA94040 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Plymouth County
Frequently asked questions about Fresh Pond
Where is Fresh Pond?
- Fresh Pond is a lake in Plymouth County, Massachusetts. Its water-quality measurements are published by MassDEP and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Fresh Pond?
- Fresh Pond in Plymouth County, Massachusetts has water-quality measurements published by MassDEP, shown here as reported. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 9.2 µg/L.
Is Fresh Pond safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Fresh Pond is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for habitat alterations, mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Fresh Pond?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Fresh Pond, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 51 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Can I fish at Fresh Pond?
- Public access to Fresh Pond is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Massachusetts's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Fresh Pond across LakeQuality
Planning a trip around Cape Cod?
Fresh Pond is about 26 miles from Cape Cod National Seashore. Crowds there swing hard by season, so the month you pick changes both how busy the park is and what lodging costs.
Best time to visit Cape Cod →More lakes in Massachusetts
Other Lakes in Massachusetts
Eutrophic Lakes in Massachusetts
Where this data comes from
3 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2018. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP)
MASSDEP3 samples · 2018
Analytical methods
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)