Ripley County Lake Quality
Missouri, 3 lakes, average grade A (Excellent)
Ripley County holds 3 monitored lakes. With a sample that small the county-level summary describes those specific waters, not necessarily every water body in the county. 2 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 Missouri. 2 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. Fourche Creek Lake (A) is the cleanest in the county.
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Quick Answers for Ripley County
Planning a trip? Check special fishing regulations for Fourche Creek Lake — or check the official Missouri fishing regulations.
All Lakes in Ripley County
3 lakes · 2 graded, 1 not rated2 graded lakes · 1 not rated, hidden
| # | Lake | Grade | Clarity | Phosphorus | Algae | Trophic | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AFourche Creek LakeRipley | A | 13.6 ft | 9.1 µg/L | 1.2 µg/L | No recent samples | Not recorded |
| 2 | ARipley County LakeRipley | A | 6.6 ft | 10.7 µg/L | 2.3 µg/L | No recent samples | Not recorded |
| NRGlen Holland LakeRipley | NR | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | Not recorded |
NR = not rated: there is not enough recent sampling to support a letter. That is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 (insufficient information), not a failing grade. How grading works.
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Other Counties in Missouri
See how Ripley County stacks up in the national county water-quality rankings, or browse the full directory of graded lakes across all United States (49 states), Canada (Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia, British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador), and 38 other country hubs..
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.