Green Lake vs Nest Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Green Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Nest Lake. Both are in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota.
Both Green Lake and Nest Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any differences in the readings here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies sampling them. Green Lake reads materially cleaner than Nest Lake on nutrients and algae. A gap that wide is unlikely to close in a single year of remediation work; it reflects multi-decade differences in the lakes themselves.
For a recreational visitor, the wider gap in the readings is decisive: Green Lake has the lower nutrient and algae numbers. For a researcher, the gap is the interesting part: what is different about the two watersheds, and which of those differences is mutable?
Green Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 14.1 ft.
Nest Lake
Moderate clarity, visible to about 7 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Green Lake | Nest Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 14.1 ft Better | 7 ft |
| Phosphorus | 14 µg/L Better | 30 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 4 µg/L Better | 8.5 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 110 ft Better | 40 ft |
| Surface Area | 5,569 acres | 969 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 22 Better | 19 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | eutrophic |
A green ✓ marks the better value for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better). Surface area and trophic state carry no tick — a bigger lake is not a better lake.
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Verdict
Green Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Nest Lake. Water clarity: 14.1 ft vs 7 ft. For fishing diversity, Green Lake also leads with 22 species.
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.