Little Sandy Lake
St. Louis County, MinnesotaView mapDirections
Minnesota PCA publishes the water-quality measurements for Little Sandy Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Salinity / chlorides
Little Sandy Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 19 µg/L.
Little Sandy Lake is a mesotrophic lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota. Limited fish-species data available. No public access — the lake is private or restricted. Compared to the 67 other monitored lakes in St. Louis County, Little Sandy Lake ranks #42 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Minnesota DNR LakeFinder, last sampled 2025-10-22. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLow algae
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Little Sandy Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for salinity / chlorides. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Little Sandy Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Minnesota DNR and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Little Sandy Lake
These are the measurements Minnesota PCA publishes for Little Sandy Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
No clarity data. Phosphorus 19 µg/L. TSI 47.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | No reading How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. | |
| Total phosphorus | 19µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| 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. | 47 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Little Sandy Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
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Fishing Little Sandy Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2021–2025).
Phosphorus
Stable-0.25 µg/L/yr5 years
EPA Impairment Status
Little Sandy 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: Cultural.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MN69-0729-00 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
1 EPA-permitted facility operate within about 5 miles of Little Sandy Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits.
- Us Steel Corp-Minntac WwtfMountain Iron · 3.8 mi away · NPDES MN0050504
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 St. Louis County
Frequently asked questions about Little Sandy Lake
Where is Little Sandy Lake?
- Little Sandy Lake is a lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota. Its water-quality measurements are published by Minnesota PCA and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Little Sandy Lake?
- Little Sandy Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota has water-quality measurements published by Minnesota PCA, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 19 µg/L.
Is Little Sandy Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Little Sandy Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for salinity / chlorides. Check local advisories before you swim.
Can I fish at Little Sandy Lake?
- Public access to Little Sandy Lake is listed as no on the lake record, so confirm before you make the trip. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Minnesota's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
29 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2021–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency - Ambient Surface Water
MNPCA29 samples · 2021–2025
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Two Reagent Colorimetry
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- Turbidity by Nephelometry
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
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)