North Bethany City Reservoir
Harrison County, Missouri76 acresView mapDirections
No nutrient or algae sampling on record from Missouri DNR for this lake.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 42 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
North Bethany City Reservoir in Harrison County, Missouri has water-quality measurements published by Missouri DNR, shown here as reported. Surface area: 76 acres.
North Bethany City Reservoir is a 76-acre lake in Harrison County, Missouri with an estimated average depth of about 42 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Missouri DNR, last sampled 2022-10-12. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What North Bethany City Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. North Bethany City Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether North Bethany City Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for North Bethany City Reservoir
These are the measurements Missouri DNR publishes for North Bethany City Reservoir, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
No clarity data.
Ask about North Bethany City Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
North Bethany City Reservoir typically sits around 82°F at the surface in August. Summer average is about 80°F. Usually warmest in Aug (about 82°F) and coldest in May (about 66°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (66°F) to its warmest (82°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 17 field readings (2015–2022) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full North Bethany City Reservoir water temperature breakdown →
Lake Details
Max depth
~42 ft est.
Surface area
76 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Missouri DNR
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Missouri has not published bathymetry for North Bethany City Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.7 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
932 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
- Bethany (North Bethany City Reservoir)Public
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
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Fishing North Bethany City Reservoir
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
North Bethany City Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the City of Bethany Dam (completed 1960), built primarily for water supply on the TRIBUTARY TO WEST FORK BIG CK; earth-type dam, 60 ft tall and 1,000 ft long.
- Surface area
- 76 ac
- Normal storage
- 2,820 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 3,850 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 1.15 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- CITY OF BETHANY
All listed purposes: Water Supply;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MO10071 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.09 km)
EPA Impairment Status
North Bethany City 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 MO_7109.00 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
2 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of North Bethany City Reservoir under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits. 1 facility has a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Bethany WwtfBethany · 4.4 mi away · NPDES MO0033502Recent violation
- Bethany Army Reserve Center (Arc)Bethany · 3.4 mi away · NPDES MONX00241
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 Harrison County
Frequently asked questions about North Bethany City Reservoir
Where is North Bethany City Reservoir?
- North Bethany City Reservoir is a lake in Harrison County, Missouri. Its water-quality measurements are published by Missouri DNR and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of North Bethany City Reservoir?
- North Bethany City Reservoir in Harrison County, Missouri has water-quality measurements published by Missouri DNR, shown here as reported. Surface area: 76 acres.
Is North Bethany City Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. North Bethany City Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of North Bethany City Reservoir?
- North Bethany City Reservoir typically sits around 82°F at the surface in August, from 17 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2015–2022). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is North Bethany City Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers North Bethany City Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 42 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 76 acres.
Are there boat ramps on North Bethany City Reservoir?
- North Bethany City Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Bethany (North Bethany City Reservoir). Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at North Bethany City Reservoir?
- North Bethany City Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Missouri's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore North Bethany City Reservoir across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
3 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources
MDNR3 samples · 2022
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk in meters
- Nitrogen and Phosphorus, Total, Whole-water, Alkaline Persulfate Digest
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
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)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory