Alachua-Orange Lake
Alachua County, FloridaView mapDirections
Florida DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Alachua-Orange Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Algal growth
Alachua-Orange Lake in Alachua County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 53 µg/L.
Alachua-Orange Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Alachua County, Florida. Water clarity is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 30 other monitored lakes in Alachua County, Alachua-Orange Lake ranks #15 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, FDEP, last sampled 2025-05-13. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
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Swimming conditions
Readings onlyRecreation use not supported
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-Orange Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for algal growth, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Alachua-Orange 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-Orange Lake
These are the measurements Florida DEP publishes for Alachua-Orange Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 2 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 53 µg/L. TSI 64.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 53µg/L | Fair 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. | 64 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
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Fishing Alachua-Orange Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2024).
Water clarity
Improving5 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+1.81 µg/L/yr5 years
EPA Impairment Status
Alachua-Orange Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit FL2749A · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Alachua County
Frequently asked questions about Alachua-Orange Lake
Where is Alachua-Orange Lake?
- Alachua-Orange Lake is a lake in Alachua 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-Orange Lake?
- Alachua-Orange Lake in Alachua County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 53 µg/L.
Is Alachua-Orange Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Alachua-Orange Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for algal growth, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
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Where this data comes from
193 measurements from 4 monitoring stations, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- FLORIDA LAKEWATCH
21FLKWAT_WQX193 samples · 2020–2025
Monitoring station identifiers (4)
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