Lake County Lake Quality

Lake County's 38 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. 6 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. 5 lakes pull an A on their own, and almost none fall into the D or F brackets.

The county's lakes lean shallow, which makes the grades sensitive to wind, sediment-resuspension, and any nutrient inputs from the watershed. The cleanest lake on the books is Big Star Lake (A); the most-stressed is Wolf Lake (B).