St. Joseph County Lake Quality
Michigan, 12 lakes, average grade B (Good)
St. Joseph County has 12 graded lakes — a thin enough sample that one or two stressed lakes can move the county average noticeably. Use the per-lake pages below for what actually matters. The county-wide average lands at B — solid water quality with most lakes carrying clear summer transparency and low-to-moderate phosphorus.
Most of the county's monitored lakes are shallow — under 50 feet — which means wind keeps the water column mixed all summer and sediment-bound phosphorus releases back into the surface layer whenever the bottom is disturbed. Templene Lake (A) is the cleanest in the county.
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Quick Answers for St. Joseph County
Planning a trip? Check special fishing regulations for Templene Lake — or check the official Michigan fishing regulations.
Fishing in St. Joseph County
All Lakes in St. Joseph County
12 lakes · 5 graded, 7 not rated5 graded lakes · 7 not rated, hidden
| # | Lake | Grade | Clarity | Phosphorus | Algae | Trophic | Max Depth | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ATemplene LakeSt. Joseph | A | 6 ft | 18 µg/L | 5.2 µg/L | No recent samples | No recent samples | ✓ Public |
| 2 | AWahbememe LakeSt. Joseph | A | No recent samples | 6.5 µg/L | 2 µg/L | No recent samples | No recent samples | Not recorded |
| 3 | BPerrin LakeSt. Joseph | B | 10 ft | 9.5 µg/L | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | ✓ Public |
| 4 | CPortage LakeSt. Joseph | C | 5.5 ft | 31 µg/L | 1.6 µg/L | No recent samples | No recent samples | ✓ Public |
| 5 | DPalmer LakeSt. Joseph | D | 2 ft | 19 µg/L | 21 µg/L | No recent samples | 40 ft | Not recorded |
| NRCorey LakeSt. Joseph | NR | 14.5 ft | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | Not recorded | |
| NRFishers LakeSt. Joseph | NR | 10.5 ft | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | 42 ft | ✓ Public | |
| NRKlinger LakeSt. Joseph | NR | 9.5 ft | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | 70 ft | Not recorded | |
| NRGrass LakeSt. Joseph | NR | 7 ft | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | ✓ Public | |
| NRGrass LakeSt. Joseph | NR | 7 ft | 18 µg/L | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | Not recorded | |
| NRLake TempleneSt. Joseph | NR | 6.5 ft | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | ✓ Public | |
| NRSturgeon LakeSt. Joseph | NR | 3 ft | 77 µg/L | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | ✓ Public |
NR = not rated: there is not enough recent sampling to support a letter. That is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 (insufficient information), not a failing grade. How grading works.
Lake Match
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Other Counties in Michigan
See how St. Joseph County stacks up in the national county water-quality rankings, or browse the full directory of graded lakes across all 49 states and 2 Canadian provinces.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.