Question 1

Lakes With Algae Readings in British Columbia?

Accepted Answer

6 lakes in British Columbia report elevated algae levels (chlorophyll-a above 20 µg/L). These lakes are most likely to develop blue-green algae blooms during warm, calm summer weather. Avoid swimming during visible blooms and rinse pets after contact.

Question 2

What is the cleanest lake in British Columbia?

Accepted Answer

Quamichan Lake in Cowichan County has the cleanest nutrient and algae readings in British Columbia, with 5.6 feet of measured water clarity.

Question 3

How are these rankings calculated?

Accepted Answer

Nutrients and algae, total phosphorus, nitrogen, chlorophyll-a and turbidity, are read against EPA National Lakes Assessment 2022 condition classes for that lake’s ecoregion. Water clarity (Secchi depth) is measured and shown separately. Lakes without enough recent samples are listed without a condition class rather than ranked low. Source data comes from the EPA Water Quality Portal.

#	Lake	County	Clarity	Phosphorus	Algae
1	Quamichan Lake	Cowichan	5.6 ft	248 µg/L	46.7 µg/L
2	Michael Lake	Cowichan	2.6 ft	11.5 µg/L	45.2 µg/L
3	Nulki Lake	Nechako River	3.8 ft	97.6 µg/L	43.8 µg/L
4	Swan Lake	Victoria	3.4 ft	219 µg/L	25.1 µg/L
5	Quennell Lake	Cowichan	4.8 ft	61.9 µg/L	23.3 µg/L
6	Beaver Lake	Victoria	-	25 µg/L	22 µg/L

Lakes With Algae Readings in British Columbia

Ranked List

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