Clear Fork Reservoir
Morrow County, Ohio1,024 acresView mapDirections
Not Rated: four monitoring stations are on record, but they measured water clarity only. LakeQuality’s A–F method grades total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity; clarity is shown, not scored.
- 77 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Clear Fork Reservoir in Morrow County, Ohio is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 3.1 ft visibility. Surface area: 1024 acres.
- Clarity
- 3.1 ft
- Max depth
- ~77 ft est.
- Area
- 1,024 acres
- Public access
- Yes
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Watch Clear Fork Reservoir’s letter
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Free interactive depth-contour map of Clear Fork Reservoir, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 24 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Ohio DNR.
Why Clear Fork Reservoir has no grade
Clear Fork Reservoir has monitoring on record from four stations, but only water clarity was measured. LakeQuality’s A–F letter uses total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity against EPA National Lakes Assessment condition classes. With none of those grading measurements on record, Clear Fork Reservoir is Not Rated — not an F. Its 3.1-foot median from 28 readings collected 2021 is still shown as clarity, but clarity alone cannot earn a letter.
Not Rated is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 — insufficient information. Everything below that has been measured is still reported on this page.
Sampling is run by Ohio EPA and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.
Clear Fork Reservoir is a 1,024-acre lake in Morrow County, Ohio with an estimated average depth of about 77 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Ohio EPA, last sampled 2021-10-14. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Clear Fork Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Big water1,024 acres
Clear Fork Reservoir Water Quality Report Card (2026)
A printable one-page report card for Clear Fork Reservoir: grade, clarity, phosphorus, algae, multi-year trend, depth, and fish — with sources.
Swimming Safety
Not ratedLimited data
The letter is not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water quality measurements for Clear Fork Reservoir
These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.
Very murky, less than 3.1 ft of visibility. TSI 61.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 3.1 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 61 | Eutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Current Conditions
USGS snapshot Oct 1, 2020, 4:45 AM from gauge 03131898 (Clear Fork Reservoir near Lexington OH). Station page ↗ — a live reading replaces this snapshot when the gauge responds. Missing live data is not an all-clear.
→ Clear Fork Reservoir water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~77 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~29 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 1,024 acres |
| Public Access | Yes |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Ohio has not published bathymetry for Clear Fork Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Recreation & Access
- Clear Fork Reservoir - MarinaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Clear Fork Reservoir
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Clear Fork Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Clear Fork Reservoir Dam (completed 1949), built primarily for water supply on the CLEAR FORK MOHICAN RIVER; earth-type dam, 44 ft tall and 3,420 ft long.
- Surface area
- 1,024 ac
- Normal storage
- 10,922 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 26,532 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 34.67 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- City of Mansfield
All listed purposes: Water Supply;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID OH00778 · Operator website
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
10 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Clear Fork Reservoir under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits, including 1 classified by the EPA as major discharger. 6 facilities have a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Village Of Lexington WwtpLexington · 3.5 mi away · NPDES OH0020257MajorRecent violation
- Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseLexington · 1.1 mi away · NPDES OH0136565Recent violation
- Mansfield WtpMansfield · 2.4 mi away · NPDES OH0003867Recent violation
- Hamilton Standard Controls United TechnologiesLexington · 2.8 mi away · NPDES OH0095281Recent violation
- Cole Tooling & StampingOntario · 4.3 mi away · NPDES OH0138797Recent violation
- Cedar Creek Mhp LlcLexington · 4.8 mi away · NPDES OH0138509Recent violation
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Graded lakes near Clear Fork Reservoir
Clear Fork Reservoir has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.
Nearby Lakes in Morrow County
Frequently asked questions about Clear Fork Reservoir
Where is Clear Fork Reservoir?
- Clear Fork Reservoir is a lake in Morrow County, Ohio. LakeQuality has not rated this lake (UNRATED) — the only measurement available is water clarity, which is not a water-quality indicator on its own — EPA's National Lakes Assessment does not grade clarity.
What is the water quality grade for Clear Fork Reservoir?
- Clear Fork Reservoir in Morrow County, Ohio is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 3.1 ft visibility. Surface area: 1024 acres.
Is Clear Fork Reservoir safe to swim in?
- The letter is not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Clear Fork Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Clear Fork Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 77 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 1024 acres.
What is the water level at Clear Fork Reservoir?
- The USGS snapshot on this page for Clear Fork Reservoir is 1201.26 ft of water-surface elevation, recorded Oct 1, 2020, 4:45 AM at gauge 03131898. Current Conditions hydrates a live NWIS reading from that same station when the gauge responds. A missed live fetch is not an all-clear.
Are there boat ramps on Clear Fork Reservoir?
- Clear Fork Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Clear Fork Reservoir - Marina. Public access is listed as yes.
Explore Clear Fork Reservoir across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
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Where this data comes from
28 measurements from 4 monitoring stations, 2021. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Ohio Lake Management Society (Volunteer)
OLMS28 samples · 2021
Monitoring station identifiers (4)
Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated and data sources.
Other records on this page
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory