Shelby County Lake Quality
Missouri, 5 lakes, average grade D (Nutrient-rich)
Shelby County holds 5 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. On average, Shelby County lakes grade D, with phosphorus loading and reduced clarity showing up across most of the dataset.
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. Hunnewell Lake (C) is the cleanest in the county.
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Quick Answers for Shelby County
Planning a trip? Check special fishing regulations for Hunnewell Lake — or check the official Missouri fishing regulations.
All Lakes in Shelby County
5 lakes · 2 graded, 3 not rated2 graded lakes · 3 not rated, hidden
| # | Lake | Grade | Clarity | Phosphorus | Algae | Trophic | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CHunnewell LakeShelby | C | 3.2 ft | 36 µg/L | 15.4 µg/L | No recent samples | Not recorded |
| 2 | FShelbyville LakeShelby | F | 1 ft | 252.5 µg/L | 112.4 µg/L | No recent samples | Not recorded |
| NRDaniel Boone LakeShelby | NR | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | Not recorded | |
| NRShelbina LakeShelby | NR | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | No recent samples | Not recorded | |
| NRSteffen LakeShelby | 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 Shelby 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.