Otisco Lake
Onondaga County, New York2,291 acresView mapDirections
Not Rated: one monitoring station are on record, but they measured water clarity only. LakeQuality’s A–F method grades total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity; clarity is shown, not scored.
- Impaired · Oxygen depletion (low DO)
- 50 ft max depth
- Limited data
Otisco Lake in Onondaga County, New York is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 5.2 ft visibility. Surface area: 2291 acres.
- Clarity
- 5.2 ft
- Max depth
- ~50 ft est.
- Area
- 2,291 acres
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Stays near Otisco Lake
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Watch Otisco Lake’s letter
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Why Otisco Lake has no grade
Otisco Lake has monitoring on record from one station, but only water clarity was measured. LakeQuality’s A–F letter uses total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity against EPA National Lakes Assessment condition classes. With none of those grading measurements on record, Otisco Lake is Not Rated — not an F. Its 5.2-foot median from 14 readings collected 2020 is still shown as clarity, but clarity alone cannot earn a letter.
Not Rated is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 — insufficient information. Everything below that has been measured is still reported on this page.
Sampling is run by NYSDEC and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.
Otisco Lake is a 2,291-acre lake in Onondaga County, New York with an estimated average depth of about 50 feet.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NYSDEC, last sampled 2020-09-23. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Otisco Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Big water2,291 acres
Swimming Safety
Not ratedLimited data
The letter is not a swimming clearance. Otisco Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Water quality measurements for Otisco Lake
These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.
Murky, only visible to about 5.2 ft. TSI 53.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 5.2 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 53 | Eutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~50 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~22 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 2,291 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. New York has not published bathymetry for Otisco Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
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.
Fishing Otisco Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Otisco Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Otisco Lake Dam (completed 1956), built primarily for recreation on the NINEMILE CREEK; concrete-type dam, 18 ft tall and 310 ft long.
- Surface area
- 2,291 ac
- Normal storage
- 26,067 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 47,890 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 39.15 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- ONONDAGA COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY (OCWA)
All listed purposes: Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NY00753 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Otisco Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit NY0702-0011 · Official waterbody report
Graded lakes near Otisco Lake
Otisco Lake has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.
Nearby Lakes in Onondaga County
Frequently asked questions about Otisco Lake
Where is Otisco Lake?
- Otisco Lake is a lake in Onondaga County, New York. LakeQuality has not rated this lake (UNRATED) — the only measurement available is water clarity, which is not a water-quality indicator on its own — EPA's National Lakes Assessment does not grade clarity.
What is the water quality grade for Otisco Lake?
- Otisco Lake in Onondaga County, New York is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 5.2 ft visibility. Surface area: 2291 acres.
Is Otisco Lake safe to swim in?
- The letter is not a swimming clearance. Otisco Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Otisco Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Otisco Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 50 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 2291 acres.
Explore Otisco Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
14 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS14 samples · 2020
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)