Greenfield Lake
New Hanover County, North CarolinaView mapDirections
NC DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Greenfield Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Public access
- Limited data
Greenfield Lake in New Hanover County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 55 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 20.5 µg/L.
Greenfield Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in New Hanover County, North Carolina. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in New Hanover County, Greenfield Lake ranks #3 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NCDEQ, last sampled 2023-09-05. 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. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Greenfield Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Greenfield Lake
These are the measurements NC DEQ publishes for Greenfield Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 4.7 ft. Phosphorus 55 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 20.5 µg/L. TSI 59.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 4.7ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 55µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 20.5µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 59 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
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Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
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Fishing Greenfield Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Greenfield Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Greenfield Lake Dam (completed 1800), built primarily for recreation on the Cape Fear River; concrete-type dam, 9 ft tall and 1,200 ft long.
- Max storage
- 200 ac-ft
- Hazard class
- Low
- Owner
- City of Wilmington
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NC01113 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in New Hanover County
Frequently asked questions about Greenfield Lake
Where is Greenfield Lake?
- Greenfield Lake is a lake in New Hanover County, North Carolina. Its water-quality measurements are published by NC DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Greenfield Lake?
- Greenfield Lake in New Hanover County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 55 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 20.5 µg/L.
Is Greenfield Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Can I fish at Greenfield Lake?
- Public access to Greenfield Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by North Carolina's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
39 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North Carolina Dept of Environmental Quality NCDEQ-DWR WQX
21NC03WQ39 samples · 2023
Analytical methods
- WSSSOP
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
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.