Centennial Lake
Howard County, Maryland50 acresView mapDirections
MDE publishes the water-quality measurements for Centennial Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Algal growth
- Limited data
Centennial Lake in Howard County, Maryland has water-quality measurements published by MDE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.3 ft visibility. Surface area: 50 acres.
Centennial Lake is a 50-acre lake in Howard County, Maryland. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, your state environmental agency, last sampled 2017-10-23. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Centennial Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Centennial Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Maryland Department of the Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Centennial Lake
These are the measurements MDE publishes for Centennial 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 3.3 ft of visibility. TSI 60.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.3ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| 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. | 60 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Centennial Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Surface area
50 acres
No bathymetric survey has been published for Centennial Lake, so its depth is not documented here.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Centennial Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Centennial Lake in Howard County, Maryland — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.
Top-rated places to stay near Centennial Lake
Prices for Oct 2–4, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Follow Centennial Lake’s readings
Email me when new measurements post for this lake. Updates stay free.
Or email
Fishing Centennial Lake
Water quality readings over time
3 seasons of samples on record (2014–2017). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening3 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Centennial Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Centennial Park Dam (completed 1985), built primarily for recreation on the Little Patuxent River-TR; earth-type dam, 42 ft tall and 1,025 ft long.
- Surface area
- 50 ac
- Normal storage
- 510 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 1,519 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 3.5 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Howard County Parks Dept
All listed purposes: Recreation;Flood Risk Reduction.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MD00284 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.45 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Centennial Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Drinking water, Aquatic life.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MD-021311050955-Centennial_Lake · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Howard County
Frequently asked questions about Centennial Lake
Where is Centennial Lake?
- Centennial Lake is a lake in Howard County, Maryland. Its water-quality measurements are published by MDE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Centennial Lake?
- Centennial Lake in Howard County, Maryland has water-quality measurements published by MDE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.3 ft visibility. Surface area: 50 acres.
Is Centennial Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Centennial Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Explore Centennial Lake across LakeQuality
More lakes in Maryland
Other Lakes in Maryland
Eutrophic Lakes in Maryland
Where this data comes from
604 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2014–2017. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Submitting organization not recorded for these samples604 samples · 2014–2017
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