North Arm of Mill Creek Lake
Amherst County, VirginiaView mapDirections
Virginia DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for North Arm of Mill Creek Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · pH / acidity
North Arm of Mill Creek Lake in Amherst County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 14.1 µg/L.
North Arm of Mill Creek Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Amherst County, Virginia. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 6 other monitored lakes in Amherst County, North Arm of Mill Creek Lake ranks #6 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2026-07-08. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyElevated nutrients
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. North Arm of Mill Creek Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether North Arm of Mill Creek Lake 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 North Arm of Mill Creek Lake
These are the measurements Virginia DEQ publishes for North Arm of Mill Creek Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 3.6 ft. Phosphorus 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 14.1 µg/L. TSI 54.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.6ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 20µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 14.1µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 54 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
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Stays near North Arm of Mill Creek Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near North Arm of Mill Creek Lake in Amherst County, Virginia — 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. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around North Arm of Mill Creek Lake are listed below.
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Fishing North Arm of Mill Creek Lake
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 7 years of monitoring (2012–2026).
Water clarity
Improving7 years
Phosphorus
Improving-0.5 µg/L/yr7 years
Chlorophyll-a
Stable0 µg/L/yr7 years
EPA Impairment Status
North Arm of Mill Creek Lake 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: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VAW-H11L_MIN01A06 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Amherst County
Frequently asked questions about North Arm of Mill Creek Lake
Where is North Arm of Mill Creek Lake?
- North Arm of Mill Creek Lake is a lake in Amherst County, Virginia. Its water-quality measurements are published by Virginia DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of North Arm of Mill Creek Lake?
- North Arm of Mill Creek Lake in Amherst County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 14.1 µg/L.
Is North Arm of Mill Creek Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. North Arm of Mill Creek Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Explore North Arm of Mill Creek Lake across LakeQuality
3 documented falls within 12.4 mi, nearest Statons Creek Falls
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
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Where this data comes from
70 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2025–2026. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB70 samples · 2025–2026
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
- 446.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophylls and Pheopigments in Phytoplankton by Spectrophotometry
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