Jamesville Reservoir
Onondaga County, New York252 acresView mapDirections
Not Rated: one monitoring station 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.
- 38 ft max depth
- Limited data
Jamesville Reservoir in Onondaga County, New York is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 5.3 ft visibility. Surface area: 252 acres.
- Clarity
- 5.3 ft
- Max depth
- ~38 ft est.
- Area
- 252 acres
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Watch Jamesville Reservoir’s letter
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Why Jamesville Reservoir has no grade
Jamesville Reservoir has monitoring on record from one station, 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, Jamesville Reservoir is Not Rated — not an F. Its 5.3-foot median from 8 readings collected 2020 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 NYSDEC and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.
Jamesville Reservoir is a 252-acre lake in Onondaga County, New York with an estimated average depth of about 38 feet.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NYSDEC, last sampled 2020-09-20. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
Swimming Safety
Not ratedLimited data
The letter is not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water quality measurements for Jamesville Reservoir
These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.
Murky, only visible to about 5.3 ft. TSI 53.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 5.3 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 53 | Eutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~38 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~14 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 252 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. New York has not published bathymetry for Jamesville 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.
Fishing Jamesville Reservoir
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Jamesville Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Jamesville Reservoir Dam (completed 1874), built primarily for navigation on the BUTTERNUT CREEK; concrete-type dam, 53 ft tall and 446 ft long.
- Surface area
- 252 ac
- Normal storage
- 3,900 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 6,250 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 46.9 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- New York State Canal Corporation
All listed purposes: Navigation;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NY00418 · Operator website
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
5 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Jamesville Reservoir under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits. 1 facility has a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Onondaga County DotJamesville · 0.7 mi away · NPDES NY0261785Recent violation
- Jamesville Penitentiary StpSyracuse · 0.8 mi away · NPDES NY0027651
- Hanson - Jamesville QuarryJamesville · 1.4 mi away · NPDES NY0002178
- Nys Dot MS4Various · 3 mi away · NPDES NY0313157
- Lafayette Central High SchoolLafayette · 4.2 mi away · NPDES NY0022471
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.
Nearby Lakes in Onondaga County
Frequently asked questions about Jamesville Reservoir
Where is Jamesville Reservoir?
- Jamesville Reservoir is a lake in Onondaga County, New York. 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 Jamesville Reservoir?
- Jamesville Reservoir in Onondaga County, New York is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 5.3 ft visibility. Surface area: 252 acres.
Is Jamesville Reservoir safe to swim in?
- The letter is not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Jamesville Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Jamesville Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 38 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 252 acres.
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Where this data comes from
8 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS8 samples · 2020
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
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)