Box Butte Reservoir
Dawes County, Nebraska1,799 acresView mapDirections
Nebraska DEE publishes the water-quality measurements for Box Butte Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- Public access
Box Butte Reservoir in Dawes County, Nebraska has water-quality measurements published by Nebraska DEE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 51.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 4.5 µg/L. Surface area: 1799 acres.
Box Butte Reservoir is a 1,799-acre mesotrophic lake in Dawes County, Nebraska. Phosphorus level is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing. Compared to the 1 other monitored lakes in Dawes County, Box Butte Reservoir ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NDEE, last sampled 2024-09-25. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Box Butte Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Camping1 public campground nearby
- Big water1,799 acres
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyModerate algae
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. Box Butte Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Box Butte Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Box Butte Reservoir
These are the measurements Nebraska DEE publishes for Box Butte Reservoir, 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 5.6 ft. Phosphorus 51.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 4.5 µg/L. TSI 53.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 5.6ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 51.5µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 4.5µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 53 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Box Butte Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Surface area
1,799 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Nebraska DEE
No bathymetric survey has been published for Box Butte Reservoir, so its depth is not documented here.
Recreation & Access
- Box Butte State Recreation AreaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Box Butte Reservoir
- Box Butte Reservoir Campground0.4 km
Nearest public campgrounds in the USGS National Map inventory, within about 3 miles. An empty list means USGS records no campground that close, which is not the same as camping being unavailable. Where the source gives an official reservation link, it is used; the cabin and hotel search does not cover campsites. More camping lakes
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Box Butte Reservoir
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Fishing Box Butte Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 11 years of monitoring (2012–2024).
Water clarity
Stable11 years
Phosphorus
Improving-7.01 µg/L/yr3 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.11 µg/L/yr10 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Box Butte Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Box Butte Dam (completed 1946), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Niobrara River; earth-type dam, 87 ft tall and 5,508 ft long.
- Surface area
- 1,799 ac
- Normal storage
- 31,060 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 45,901 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 1,460 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Irrigation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NE01069 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Box Butte Reservoir is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit NE-NI4-L0080 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Dawes County
Frequently asked questions about Box Butte Reservoir
Where is Box Butte Reservoir?
- Box Butte Reservoir is a lake in Dawes County, Nebraska. Its water-quality measurements are published by Nebraska DEE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Box Butte Reservoir?
- Box Butte Reservoir in Dawes County, Nebraska has water-quality measurements published by Nebraska DEE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 51.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 4.5 µg/L. Surface area: 1799 acres.
Is Box Butte Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Box Butte Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Are there boat ramps on Box Butte Reservoir?
- Box Butte Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Box Butte State Recreation Area. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Box Butte Reservoir?
- Box Butte Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Nebraska's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Are there campgrounds on Box Butte Reservoir?
- Box Butte Reservoir has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Box Butte Reservoir Campground. This is a location join, not a booking. Cabins and hotels are listed separately; campsite reservations use the official link when the source provides one.
Explore Box Butte Reservoir across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
132 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2012–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy
21NEB001_WQX132 samples · 2012–2024
Analytical methods
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 447.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll a and b in phytoplankton by HPLC/UV
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
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles