1
BKelly Lake
Rice County, Minnesota · 4.2 mi from Circle Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → B)
- ++6.7 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (29 vs 484.5 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Circle Lake
5 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Circle Lake carries a Grade F (Very Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Kelly Lake (Rice County, Grade B, 4.2 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
CDudley Lake
Rice County, Minnesota · 3.9 mi from Circle Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → C)
- ++7.5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (47 vs 484.5 µg/L)
3
CUnion Lake
Rice County, Minnesota · 4 mi from Circle Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → C)
- ++1.5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (1.4 vs 484.5 µg/L)
4
DMazaska Lake
Rice County, Minnesota · 3.9 mi from Circle Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- +Lower phosphorus (49 vs 484.5 µg/L)
5
DFox Lake
Rice County, Minnesota · 1.3 mi from Circle Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- ++1.5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (66 vs 484.5 µg/L)
How this list is built
Every lake on LakeQuality has a calculated grade from EPA Water Quality Portal samples — secchi depth, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a measured against Metropolitan Council thresholds. To suggest cleaner alternatives, we filter lakes within 30 miles to those with a strictly higher numeric score, then rank by grade improvement with a small proximity tiebreak. Cross-state and limited-data lakes are excluded so the list stays locally relevant.