1
ARichter Lake
Taylor County, Wisconsin · 28.7 mi from Mead Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (D → A)
- ++26.2 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (15 vs 204.5 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Mead Lake
3 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Mead Lake carries a Grade D (Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 3 lakes hold a higher grade. Richter Lake (Taylor County, Grade A, 28.7 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
BFairchild Pond
Eau Claire County, Wisconsin · 15.8 mi from Mead Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (D → B)
- ++4.2 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (30.4 vs 204.5 µg/L)
3
CEau Claire Lake
Eau Claire County, Wisconsin · 17.6 mi from Mead Lake
- +Higher grade (D → C)
- ++2.4 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (88 vs 204.5 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.