Buck Lake @ Middle
Highlands County, FloridaView mapDirections
This is the name Florida DEP records for this water. It can describe one sampling location rather than the water as a whole.
Florida DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Buck Lake @ Middle. Here is what has been measured.
- Oligotrophic
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- Limited data
Buck Lake @ Middle in Highlands County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 19 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 3 µg/L.
Buck Lake @ Middle is a cold, clear oligotrophic lake in Highlands County, Florida. Water clarity is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 72 other monitored lakes in Highlands County, Buck Lake @ Middle ranks #41 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, FDEP, last sampled 2025-08-20. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Buck Lake @ Middle is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water19 ft of visibility
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. Buck Lake @ Middle is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Buck Lake @ Middle 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 Buck Lake @ Middle
These are the measurements Florida DEP publishes for Buck Lake @ Middle, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Crystal clear, you can see 19 ft down. Phosphorus 3 µg/L. TSI 27.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 19ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 3µg/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. | 27 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Buck Lake @ Middle
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
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Fishing Buck Lake @ Middle
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Worsening6 years
Phosphorus
Improving-1.76 µg/L/yr6 years
EPA Impairment Status
Buck Lake @ Middle 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, Recreation.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit FL1932I · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Highlands County
Frequently asked questions about Buck Lake @ Middle
Where is Buck Lake @ Middle?
- Buck Lake @ Middle is in Highlands County, Florida. This is the name Florida DEP records for this water. It can describe one sampling location rather than the water as a whole. Its water-quality measurements are published by Florida DEP and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Buck Lake @ Middle?
- Buck Lake @ Middle in Highlands County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 19 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 3 µg/L.
Is Buck Lake @ Middle safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Buck Lake @ Middle is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
Explore Buck Lake @ Middle across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
8 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Submitting organization not recorded for these samples8 samples · 2020–2025
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
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