1
ABurgen Lake
Douglas County, Minnesota · 4.5 mi from Smith Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (D → A)
- ++8.4 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (15 vs 60 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Smith Lake
5 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Smith Lake carries a Grade D (Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 5 lakes hold a higher grade. Burgen Lake (Douglas County, Grade A, 4.5 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
BVictoria Lake
Douglas County, Minnesota · 4.8 mi from Smith Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (D → B)
- ++7.6 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (20 vs 60 µg/L)
3
BGeneva Lake
Douglas County, Minnesota · 5 mi from Smith Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (D → B)
- ++10.5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (22 vs 60 µg/L)
4
BLe Homme Dieu Lake
Douglas County, Minnesota · 7.3 mi from Smith Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (D → B)
- ++9.5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (21 vs 60 µg/L)
5
CJessie Lake
Douglas County, Minnesota · 3 mi from Smith Lake
- +Higher grade (D → C)
- ++3.2 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (41 vs 60 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.