Wankinco River Lake
Plymouth County, Massachusetts105 acresView mapDirections
MassDEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Wankinco River Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Nuisance exotic species
- 13 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Wankinco River Lake in Plymouth County, Massachusetts has water-quality measurements published by MassDEP, shown here as reported. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.8 µg/L. Surface area: 105 acres.
Wankinco River Lake is a 105-acre mesotrophic lake in Plymouth County, Massachusetts with an estimated average depth of about 13 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available. Compared to the 11 other monitored lakes in Plymouth County, Wankinco River Lake ranks #6 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, MassDEP, last sampled 2018-09-18. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyRecreation use not supported
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. Wankinco River Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nuisance exotic species, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Wankinco River Lake 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 Wankinco River Lake
These are the measurements MassDEP publishes for Wankinco River Lake, 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 3.8 µg/L. TSI 44.
| 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) | 3.8µg/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. | 44 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Wankinco River Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~13 ft est.
Surface area
105 acres
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 Wankinco River Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
17 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.7 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
30 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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Fishing Wankinco River Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Wankinco River Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Parker Mills Pond Dam, built primarily for recreation on the Wankinko River; earth-type dam, 19 ft tall and 415 ft long.
- Surface area
- 105 ac
- Normal storage
- 350 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 990 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 20.3 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- A.D. Makepeace Company;Town of Wareham
All listed purposes: Recreation;Irrigation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MA00150 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.23 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Wankinco River Lake 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, Recreation, Other.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MA95115 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Plymouth County
Frequently asked questions about Wankinco River Lake
Where is Wankinco River Lake?
- Wankinco River Lake 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 Wankinco River Lake?
- Wankinco River Lake in Plymouth County, Massachusetts has water-quality measurements published by MassDEP, shown here as reported. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.8 µg/L. Surface area: 105 acres.
Is Wankinco River Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Wankinco River Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nuisance exotic species, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Wankinco River Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Wankinco River Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 13 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 105 acres.
Can I fish at Wankinco River Lake?
- Public access to Wankinco River Lake 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 Wankinco River Lake across LakeQuality
Planning a trip around Cape Cod?
Wankinco River Lake is about 37 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
Mesotrophic Lakes in Massachusetts
Where this data comes from
3 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 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 (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.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)