Kansas Lake

Kansas Lake earns an F: 187 µg/L of phosphorus and clarity at 1.6 ft signal heavy nutrient loading from the surrounding watershed. Clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate similarly, so there is no obvious single lever to pull on watershed management.

A TSI above 70 puts Kansas Lake in hypereutrophic territory: visible blooms are common, and clarity rarely climbs even in early summer. At only 7 ft deep, Kansas Lake is shallow — wind keeps the water column mixed and sediment resuspension drives phosphorus levels harder to manage. Kansas Lake covers 403 acres alongside 3.9 miles of shoreline — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. Within the 5 graded lakes of Watonwan County, Kansas Lake sits at rank 5, near the bottom of the county list.

No invasive species are currently listed at Kansas Lake — the lake remains off the Minnesota infested-waters roster. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 14 documented species — a notable draw for Minnesota anglers. A documented public access point at Kansas Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. The grade is based on limited monitoring — fewer than three independent measurement years contribute, so future updates may shift the letter.