North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam
Wise County, Virginia154 acresView mapDirections
This is the name Virginia DEQ records for this water. It can describe one sampling location rather than the water as a whole.
Virginia DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam. Here is what has been measured.
- Oligotrophic
North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam in Wise County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 2 µg/L. Surface area: 154 acres.
North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam is a 154-acre cold, clear oligotrophic lake in Wise County, Virginia. Phosphorus level is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in Wise County, North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam ranks #3 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2024-10-24. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water12.1 ft of visibility
- Camping2 public campgrounds nearby
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. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam 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 Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam
These are the measurements Virginia DEQ publishes for North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam, 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 12.1 ft. Phosphorus 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 2 µg/L. TSI 39.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 12.1ft | 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) | 2µg/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. | 39 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Surface area
154 acres
No bathymetric survey has been published for North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam, so its depth is not documented here.
Recreation & Access
Public campgrounds near North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam
- Phillip'S Creek Group Picnic Area4.0 kmReserve
- Cane Patch4.9 km
Nearest public campgrounds in the USGS National Map inventory, within about 3 miles. An empty list means USGS records no campground that close, which is not the same as camping being unavailable. Where the source gives an official reservation link, it is used; the cabin and hotel search does not cover campsites. More camping lakes
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Fishing North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 4 years of monitoring (2014–2024).
Water clarity
Stable4 years
Phosphorus
Improving-0.24 µg/L/yr4 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.25 µg/L/yr4 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam is a man-made reservoir impounded by the North Fork of Pound Dam (completed 1966), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the North Fork of Pound River; rockfill-type dam, 122 ft tall and 600 ft long.
- Surface area
- 154 ac
- Normal storage
- 3,184 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 11,293 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 17 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Huntington District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA195001 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.08 km)
Nearby Lakes in Wise County
Frequently asked questions about North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam
Where is North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam?
- North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam is in Wise County, Virginia. This is the name Virginia DEQ records for this water. It can describe one sampling location rather than the water as a whole. Its water-quality measurements are published by Virginia DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam?
- North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam in Wise County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 2 µg/L. Surface area: 154 acres.
Is North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Are there campgrounds on North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam?
- North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam has 2 public campgrounds from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Phillip'S Creek Group Picnic Area, Cane Patch. This is a location join, not a booking. Cabins and hotels are listed separately; campsite reservations use the official link when the source provides one.
Explore North Fork Pound Reservoir@Dam across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
112 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2014–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB112 samples · 2014–2024
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 (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
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles