A 1977 report by An Foras Forbartha (precursor to the Environmental Protection Agency) describes Lough Oughter as the "best inland example of a flooded drumlin landscape" in Ireland, and details the varied biological communities of the area.

[3] According to a National Parks and Wildlife Service summary of the site, there is nowhere else in the country with such "mixture of land and water occur over a comparable area", with many species of wetland plants, which are common to Lough Oughter, characterised as "infrequent elsewhere".

[8] The main threats to the quality of the site, according to the National Parks and Wildlife Service, are water pollution sources like run-off from fertiliser and slurry applications, and sewage discharge which have raised the nutrient status of some lakes to hypertrophic.

[9][10] Killykeen Forest Park, managed by Coillte, is a woodland of 240 hectares (590 acres) located five miles from Cavan town, and sitting alongside the Lough Oughter system.

[citation needed] However, a 2008 proposal by Waterways Ireland suggested that levels be raised to facilitate tourism and allow pleasure boats to gain access into the lough via the River Erne from Belturbet to Killashandra.