Motts Run Reservoir
Spotsylvania County, Virginia160 acresView mapDirections
Virginia DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Motts Run Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- 35 ft max depth
- Public access
Motts Run Reservoir in Spotsylvania County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 10.2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 2.3 µg/L. Surface area: 160 acres.
Motts Run Reservoir is a 160-acre mesotrophic lake in Spotsylvania County, Virginia with an estimated average depth of about 35 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 2 public boat landings. Compared to the 6 other monitored lakes in Spotsylvania County, Motts Run Reservoir ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2022-10-20. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Motts Run Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water10.2 ft of visibility
- Boat launch2 documented ramps
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. Motts Run Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Motts Run Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Motts Run Reservoir
These are the measurements Virginia DEQ publishes for Motts Run Reservoir, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 10.2 ft. Phosphorus 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 2.3 µg/L. TSI 40.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 10.2ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 10µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 2.3µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 40 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Motts Run Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~35 ft est.
Surface area
160 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Virginia DEQ
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Virginia has not published bathymetry for Motts Run Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
10 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
3.1 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
174 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.
Recreation & Access
- Motts RunPublic
- Motts Run Recreation AreaSemi-private
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
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Fishing Motts Run Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2013–2022).
Water clarity
Stable5 years
Phosphorus
Stable0 µg/L/yr5 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.19 µg/L/yr5 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Motts Run Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Motts Run Reservoir Dam, built primarily for water supply on the Motts Run; earth-type dam, 97 ft tall and 715 ft long.
- Surface area
- 160 ac
- Normal storage
- 4,119 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 7,700 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 10.3 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- City of Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania County;City of Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania County;Mike Perry;Spotsylvania County
All listed purposes: Water Supply;Flood Risk Reduction.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA177004 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Motts Run Reservoir is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VAN-E19L_MOT02A02 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Spotsylvania County
Frequently asked questions about Motts Run Reservoir
Where is Motts Run Reservoir?
- Motts Run Reservoir is a lake in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. Its water-quality measurements are published by Virginia DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Motts Run Reservoir?
- Motts Run Reservoir in Spotsylvania County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 10.2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 2.3 µg/L. Surface area: 160 acres.
Is Motts Run Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Motts Run Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Motts Run Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Motts Run Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 35 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 160 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Motts Run Reservoir?
- Motts Run Reservoir has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Motts Run, Motts Run Recreation Area. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Motts Run Reservoir?
- Motts Run Reservoir has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Virginia's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Motts Run Reservoir across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
247 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2013–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB247 samples · 2013–2022
Analytical methods
- Tyler, John. 1968. The secchi disk, Limnology and Oceanograpy, 13(1):1-6.
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
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)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory