1
AMinnow Lake
Clearwater County, Minnesota · 8 mi from Spring Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (C → A)
- ++5.6 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (14 vs 27.5 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Spring Lake
4 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Spring Lake carries a Grade C (Fair) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 4 lakes hold a higher grade. Minnow Lake (Clearwater County, Grade A, 8 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
BPoplar Lake
Polk County, Minnesota · 2.7 mi from Spring Lake
- +Higher grade (C → B)
- ++4 ft water clarity
3
BSand Hill Lake
Polk County, Minnesota · 4.8 mi from Spring Lake
- +Higher grade (C → B)
- ++2 ft water clarity
4
BSecond Lake
Clearwater County, Minnesota · 7.7 mi from Spring Lake
- +Higher grade (C → B)
- ++2.3 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (21 vs 27.5 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.