What is the cleanest lake near Mud Lake?

Pirz Lake in Stearns County holds a Grade B water quality score and is 5.3 miles from Mud Lake.

Why is Mud Lake not Grade A?

Mud Lake holds Grade F, with about 3 ft of water clarity and 166 µg/L of phosphorus. The grade reflects measured water quality against Metropolitan Council thresholds. Cleaner alternatives nearby score higher on clarity, phosphorus, or chlorophyll-a.

Are these recommendations based on real data?

Yes. Every grade is calculated from EPA Water Quality Portal samples for the lake. Recommendations are limited to lakes within 30 miles of Mud Lake in Minnesota, with strictly higher numeric grade scores and sufficient monitoring data.

Cleaner Lakes Than Mud Lake, Top 5 Within 30 Miles, LakeQuality

Cleaner Lakes Than Mud Lake

5 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.

Mud Lake carries a Grade F (Very Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Pirz Lake (Stearns County, Grade B, 5.3 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.

Pirz Lake

Stearns County, Minnesota · 5.3 mi from Mud Lake

+Two grade letters higher (F → B)
++8.2 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (25 vs 166 µg/L)

Big Lake

Stearns County, Minnesota · 6.2 mi from Mud Lake

+Two grade letters higher (F → B)
++3.9 ft water clarity
+Lower phosphorus (26 vs 166 µg/L)

North Brown'S Lake

Stearns County, Minnesota · 3.3 mi from Mud Lake

+Higher grade (F → D)
+Lower phosphorus (61 vs 166 µg/L)

Long Lake

Stearns County, Minnesota · 3.5 mi from Mud Lake

+Higher grade (F → D)
+Lower phosphorus (57.5 vs 166 µg/L)

Rice Lake

Stearns County, Minnesota · 4.4 mi from Mud Lake

+Higher grade (F → D)
+Lower phosphorus (49 vs 166 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.