Herington Reservoir
Dickinson County, Kansas100 acresView mapDirections
KDHE publishes the water-quality measurements for Herington Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- 39 ft max depth
- Limited data
Herington Reservoir in Dickinson County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 240 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 11.5 µg/L. Surface area: 100 acres.
Herington Reservoir is a 100-acre lake in Dickinson County, Kansas with an estimated average depth of about 39 feet.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KDHE, last sampled 2017-08-01. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
No readingRecreation use not supported
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Herington Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO), pesticides, sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Herington Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Herington Reservoir
These are the measurements KDHE publishes for Herington Reservoir, 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 2.2 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 240 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 11.5 µg/L. TSI 68.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2.2ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 240µg/L | Measured, not scored The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 11.5µg/L | Measured, not scored 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. | 68 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Herington Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~39 ft est.
Surface area
100 acres
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kansas has not published bathymetry for Herington Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
25 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
4.9 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,332 ft
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.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Herington Reservoir
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Herington Reservoir in Dickinson County, Kansas — 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 Herington Reservoir
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 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.
Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at Kansas’s top lakes →
Follow Herington Reservoir’s readings
Email me when new measurements post for this lake. Updates stay free.
Or email
Fishing Herington Reservoir
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Herington Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Herington (completed 1923), built primarily for recreation on the Kohls Creek; earth-type dam, 40 ft tall and 4,000 ft long.
- Surface area
- 100 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,750 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 3,677 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 17.5 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- HERINGTON, CITY OF
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KS02468 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Herington Reservoir 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, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KS-LM047201 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Dickinson County
Frequently asked questions about Herington Reservoir
Where is Herington Reservoir?
- Herington Reservoir is a lake in Dickinson County, Kansas. Its water-quality measurements are published by KDHE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Herington Reservoir?
- Herington Reservoir in Dickinson County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 240 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 11.5 µg/L. Surface area: 100 acres.
Is Herington Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Herington Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO), pesticides, sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Herington Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Herington Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 39 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 100 acres.
Explore Herington Reservoir across LakeQuality
More lakes in Kansas
Other Lakes in Kansas
Eutrophic Lakes in Kansas
Where this data comes from
5 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2017. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Kansas Department Of Health And Environment
21KAN001_WQX5 samples · 2017
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk depth
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)