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LakeQuality

Green Valley Lake vs Twelve Mile Lake

Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.

Green Valley Lake and Twelve Mile Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of F (Very Poor). Both are in Union County, Wisconsin.

Both Green Valley Lake and Twelve Mile Lake sit in Iowa. 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 — Green Valley Lake (F) versus Twelve Mile Lake (F). 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.

F

Green Valley Lake

Union County, Wisconsin

Very murky, less than 1.5 ft of visibility.

F

Twelve Mile Lake

Union County, Wisconsin

Very murky, less than 2.4 ft of visibility.

Side-by-Side Metrics

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

MetricGreen Valley LakeTwelve Mile Lake
Overall GradeF (Very Poor)F (Very Poor)
Water Clarity1.5 ft2.4 ft
PhosphorusNo dataNo data
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)61.7 µg/L45 µg/L
Maximum Depth--
Surface Area336 acres633 acres
Public AccessUnknownUnknown
Fish Species00
Trophic Statehypereutrophiceutrophic

Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).

Verdict

Both lakes earn the same Grade F. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Green Valley Lake: 1.5 ft, Twelve Mile Lake: 2.4 ft) and what you want from the lake. Green Valley Lake matches its peer on species count.