1
ALittle Long Lake
Hennepin County, Minnesota · 5.5 mi from Swede Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → A)
- ++16.7 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (21.3 vs 139 µg/L)
Cleaner Lakes Than Swede Lake
4 higher-graded lakes within 30 miles, ranked by grade improvement and proximity.
Swede Lake carries a Grade F (Very Poor) water quality score. Within 30 miles, 4 lakes hold a higher grade. Little Long Lake (Hennepin County, Grade A, 5.5 mi away) is the closest meaningful upgrade.
2
CWaconia Lake
Carver County, Minnesota · 4.9 mi from Swede Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → C)
- ++5 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (30 vs 139 µg/L)
3
COak Lake
Carver County, Minnesota · 2 mi from Swede Lake
- +Two grade letters higher (F → C)
- ++2.2 ft water clarity
- +Lower phosphorus (42.5 vs 139 µg/L)
4
DWhaletail Lake
Hennepin County, Minnesota · 4.7 mi from Swede Lake
- +Higher grade (F → D)
- +Lower phosphorus (47.6 vs 139 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.