Kalkaska County Lake Quality

Kalkaska County's 34 monitored lakes fall in the moderate-density bracket for Michigan. The county-level average smooths over real differences — a single agricultural watershed near the southwest corner can pull the average down even if the rest of the county runs clean. 4 of those lakes carry an A–F grade. The county-level summary describes that subset, not every water body listed. The county's average grade is A — among the cleanest in Michigan. 3 lakes pull an A on their own, and almost none fall into the D or F brackets.

Most of the county's monitored lakes are shallow — under 50 feet — which means wind keeps the water column mixed all summer and sediment-bound phosphorus releases back into the surface layer whenever the bottom is disturbed. Eagle Lake (A) is the cleanest in the county.