Beaver Dam Lake vs Little Green Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Beaver Dam Lake and Little Green Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of D (Poor). Both are in Wisconsin.
Both Beaver Dam Lake and Little Green Lake sit in Wisconsin. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any grade differences here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies grading them. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Beaver Dam Lake (D) versus Little Green Lake (D). The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
With grades this close, the choice between the two lakes turns on non-water-quality factors: depth, fish species, public access, distance from home. The per-lake pages below cover all of those.
Beaver Dam Lake
Very murky, less than 1 ft of visibility.
Little Green Lake
Very murky, less than 3.2 ft of visibility.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Beaver Dam Lake | Little Green Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | D (Poor) | D (Poor) |
| Water Clarity | 1 ft | 3.2 ft |
| Phosphorus | 230.5 µg/L | 92.8 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | - | 28 ft |
| Surface Area | 6,542 acres | 462 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 0 | 5 |
| Trophic State | hypereutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade D. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Beaver Dam Lake: 1 ft, Little Green Lake: 3.2 ft) and what you want from the lake. Beaver Dam Lake has fewer fish species than Little Green Lake.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.