Updated Aug 2026
Kentucky Lake Water Quality
Water quality grades for 113 monitored lakes across 75 counties.
113 Kentucky lakes carry a grade. Most of the input data flows through monitoring run by the Kentucky Division of Water, which feeds state, federal, and volunteer measurements into the EPA Water Quality Portal. A-grade lakes are scarce in Kentucky: about 0% of the dataset. Most lakes here sit in C or D — productive, often shallow, frequently algal in late summer.
Eutrophic conditions dominate — nutrient-loaded, productive, with algal pressure that shows up most years in late summer. These lakes tend to be shallow, agricultural-watershed, and over-warmed by the time July ends. The cleanest county on average is Hopkins (grade B); the most-stressed is Shelby. The gap between the top and bottom counties is large enough that "Kentucky lake water quality" hides real local variation.
Grade Distribution
All 113 Kentucky lakes in the index: 84 (74.3%) carry an A–F grade and 29 (25.7%) are not rated, because they lack enough recent nutrient or algae sampling to support a letter.
Where to stay near Kentucky
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Top-Graded Kentucky Lakes
The highest water-quality grades in Kentucky — clarity, depth, and A-F grade at a glance.
Lake Map
Explore Kentucky Lakes
Kentucky reports, fishing & travel
Reservoirs in Kentucky
View all 86 reservoirs →86 of 113 Kentucky lakes (76%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 73 carry a High or Significant hazard rating. The oldest matched dam dates to 1930.
EPA-Impaired Lakes in Kentucky
View all 70 impaired lakes →70 of 113 Kentucky lakes (62%) are officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the most recent EPA ATTAINS reporting cycle. 1 have an approved Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) restoration plan.
Kentucky Fishing & Recreation
Licenses, regulations, records, and where to fish across Kentucky.
Counties
All 75 Kentucky counties, ranked by average lake water quality. Compare them against every county nationwide in the county rankings, browse the full directory of graded lakes, or pick a different state.
Top 25 Cleanest Lakes
25 lakes25 graded lakes
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Clarity | Trophic | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BNolin Lake | Edmonson | B | 5.5 ft | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 2 | BGrayson Lake | Carter | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 3 | BFishtrap Lake | Pike | B | No recent samples | Oligotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 4 | BFreeman Lake | Hardin | B | No recent samples | Oligotrophic | Not recorded |
| 5 | BCedar Creek Lake | Lincoln | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 6 | BStanford Reservoir | Lincoln | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 7 | BOwsley Fork Reservoir | Madison | B | No recent samples | Oligotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 8 | BCampton Lake | Wolfe | B | No recent samples | Oligotrophic | Not recorded |
| 9 | BTurner Lake | Ballard | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 10 | BLake Malone | Logan | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 11 | BLake Beshear | Christian | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 12 | BMoffit Lake | Union | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 13 | BLake Peewee | Hopkins | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 14 | BLoch Mary Reservoir | Hopkins | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 15 | BLake Washburn | Ohio | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 16 | BPennyrile Lake | Christian | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 17 | BShanty Hollow Lake | Warren | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 18 | BGrapevine Lake | Hopkins | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 19 | BCap Mauzy Lake | Union | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 20 | BIsland Lake | Ohio | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 21 | BLuzerne Lake | Muhlenberg | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 22 | BSouth Lake | Ohio | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 23 | BGoose Lake | Muhlenberg | B | No recent samples | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 24 | BProvidence City Lake New | Webster | B | No recent samples | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 25 | CRough River Lake | Breckinridge | C | 6.4 ft | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
25 Lakes Needing Attention
25 lakes25 graded lakes
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Clarity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DBenjy Kinman Lake | Henry | D | No recent samples |
| 2 | DWinchester Reservoir | Clark | D | No recent samples |
| 3 | DHonker Lake | Lyon | D | No recent samples |
| 4 | DKingfisher Lakes | Daviess | D | No recent samples |
| 5 | DSpa Lake | Logan | D | No recent samples |
| 6 | DMetropolis Lake | McCracken | D | No recent samples |
| 7 | DSwan Pond | Ballard | D | No recent samples |
| 8 | DEnergy Lake | Trigg | D | No recent samples |
| 9 | DFish Lake | Carlisle | D | No recent samples |
| 10 | DKentucky Lake | Marshall | D | No recent samples |
| 11 | DKentucky Lake | Calloway | D | No recent samples |
| 12 | DKentucky Lake | Livingston | D | No recent samples |
| 13 | DLake Morris | Christian | D | No recent samples |
| 14 | DShelby Lake | Shelby | D | No recent samples |
| 15 | DMill Creek Lake | Monroe | D | No recent samples |
| 16 | DLake Jericho | Henry | D | No recent samples |
| 17 | DHerrington Lake | Garrard | D | No recent samples |
| 18 | DLake Reba | Madison | D | No recent samples |
| 19 | DLake Elmer Davis | Owen | D | No recent samples |
| 20 | DGeneral Butler State Park Lake | Carroll | D | No recent samples |
| 21 | DBullock Pen Lake | Boone | D | No recent samples |
| 22 | DBoltz Lake | Grant | D | No recent samples |
| 23 | DTaylor Fork Lake | Madison | D | No recent samples |
| 24 | DGuist Creek Lake | Shelby | D | No recent samples |
| 25 | DCampbellsville City Reservoir | Taylor | D | No recent samples |
Lake Match
Which lake suits how you actually use one?
Six questions — swimming, fishing, quiet, cabins, drive time — and a shortlist of graded lakes that fit, with the water quality behind each one.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys and the EPA Water Quality Portal.
More on lake water quality
The top-graded lake in every state we cover, picked grade-first with water clarity as the tie-breaker — plus the states whose winner is still not clean.
State-by-state Secchi champions: the clearest measured lake in each U.S. state we grade, which is not the same as the cleanest nutrient grade.
A data snapshot of the lakes we grade: how the A–F distribution breaks down, the clearest and the greenest states, and where the water is improving.
How lakes are graded A–F on nutrients and algae using EPA ecoregion condition classes, what each letter means in the water, and why an A is not a clearance.