Big Newton Lake

On the LakeGrade rubric, Big Newton Lake pulls an A: clarity at 55.8 ft and 10 µg/L of phosphorus put it in the top bracket for Wisconsin. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

A TSI value of 29 puts Big Newton Lake in the oligotrophic range, where biological productivity stays low and the water column remains clear. A maximum depth of 40 ft puts Big Newton Lake in the middle of Wisconsin's depth distribution. The lake is compact at 69 acres, with partial shoreline records and little volume to buffer nutrient inputs. Among the 22 graded lakes in Marinette County, Big Newton Lake sits at rank 7, above the county median.

An invasive species record — Banded Mystery Snail — has been logged at Big Newton Lake; Wisconsin DNR maintains the official infested-waters list. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 5 documented species — a notable draw for Wisconsin anglers. Public access is available — the lake is on the Wisconsin DNR public-access list. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.