Alachua-Moss Lake
Putnam County, FloridaView mapDirections
Florida DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Alachua-Moss Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · pH / acidity
- 47 ft max depth
- Limited data
Alachua-Moss Lake in Putnam County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 19.5 µg/L.
Alachua-Moss Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Putnam County, Florida with an estimated average depth of about 47 feet. Compared to the 27 other monitored lakes in Putnam County, Alachua-Moss Lake ranks #11 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, FDEP, last sampled 2020-08-28. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLimited data
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Alachua-Moss Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4C) for pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Alachua-Moss Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Alachua-Moss Lake
These are the measurements Florida DEP publishes for Alachua-Moss Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 3.9 ft. Phosphorus 19.5 µg/L. TSI 52.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.9ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 19.5µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 52 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Alachua-Moss Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Alachua-Moss Lake typically sits around 60°F at the surface in February. Usually warmest in Apr (about 78°F) and coldest in Feb (about 60°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (60°F) to its warmest (78°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 12 field readings (2011–2018) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Alachua-Moss Lake water temperature breakdown →
Lake Details
Max depth
~47 ft est.
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Florida has not published bathymetry for Alachua-Moss Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
62 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.2 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
105 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
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Fishing Alachua-Moss Lake
EPA Impairment Status
Alachua-Moss Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4C).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit FL2713A · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Putnam County
Frequently asked questions about Alachua-Moss Lake
Where is Alachua-Moss Lake?
- Alachua-Moss Lake is a lake in Putnam County, Florida. Its water-quality measurements are published by Florida DEP and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Alachua-Moss Lake?
- Alachua-Moss Lake in Putnam County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 19.5 µg/L.
Is Alachua-Moss Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Alachua-Moss Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4C) for pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Alachua-Moss Lake?
- Alachua-Moss Lake typically sits around 60°F at the surface in February, from 12 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2011–2018). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Alachua-Moss Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Alachua-Moss Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 47 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
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Where this data comes from
12 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2020. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- FLORIDA LAKEWATCH
21FLKWAT_WQX12 samples · 2020
Monitoring station identifiers (3)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)