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LakeQuality

Pleasant Hill Reservoir

Richland County, Ohio2,600 acresView mapDirections

NR
Not rated

Not Rated: two monitoring stations 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.

Water temp
~75°F
Typical for Sep · EPA WQP
Clarity
3 ft
Secchi · sampled 2021
Max depth
~60 ft est.
GLOBathy model
Level
No reading
No gauge
Trend
No reading
Not enough history
  • 60 ft max depth
  • Public access
  • Limited data

Pleasant Hill Reservoir in Richland County, Ohio is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 3 ft visibility. Surface area: 2600 acres.

Clarity
3 ft
Typical in September
75°F
Max depth
~60 ft est.
Area
2,600 acres
Public access
Yes
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Watch Pleasant Hill Reservoir’s letter

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Free interactive depth-contour map of Pleasant Hill Reservoir, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 35 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Ohio DNR.

Why Pleasant Hill Reservoir has no grade

Pleasant Hill Reservoir has monitoring on record from two stations, 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, Pleasant Hill Reservoir is Not Rated — not an F. Its 3-foot median from 6 readings collected 2021 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 Ohio EPA and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.

Pleasant Hill Reservoir is a 2,600-acre lake in Richland County, Ohio with an estimated average depth of about 60 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Ohio EPA, last sampled 2021-09-01. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.

What Pleasant Hill Reservoir is good for

From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.

  • Boat launch1 documented ramp
  • Camping1 public campground nearby
  • Big water2,600 acres

Swimming Safety

Not rated

Limited data

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.

Compare the safest swimming lakes near Columbus

Get alerts for Pleasant Hill Reservoir

Water quality measurements for Pleasant Hill Reservoir

These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.

Very murky, less than 3 ft of visibility. TSI 61.

MetricValueGrade
Water Clarity (Secchi Depth)3 ftNot graded
PhosphorusNo recent samples
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No recent samples
Trophic State Index (TSI)61Eutrophic

High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity

Water Temperature

Pleasant Hill Reservoir typically sits around 75°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 76°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 78°F) and coldest in Oct (about 62°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.

Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
73°
Jul
78°
Aug
78°
Sep
75°
Oct
62°
Nov
Dec

Typical surface water temperature by month, from 388 field readings (20102021) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Pleasant Hill Reservoir water temperature breakdown →

Lake Details

CharacteristicValue
Maximum Depth~60 ft est.
Surface Area2,600 acres
Public AccessYes

Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Ohio has not published bathymetry for Pleasant Hill Reservoir.

Lake Size & Watershed

Watershed (drainage) area
195 sq mi
Shoreline
7.8 mi
Elevation
1,024 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

1
Boat Landings
Yes
Public Access
1
Campgrounds
  • Pleasant Hill LakePublic

Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps

Public campgrounds near Pleasant Hill Reservoir

  • Pleasant Hill Lake Park Campground0.7 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

Fishing Pleasant Hill Reservoir

Invasive & Introduced Species

Red chips are ecologically harmful invasive species. Gray chips are stocked or introduced fish that aren't a current ecological concern.

Oscar(since 2000)

Source: USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) Database. Hover a chip to see scientific name, ecological context, status, and first-observed year.

Reservoir Info (USACE NID)

Pleasant Hill Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Pleasant Hill Dam (completed 1937), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the CLEAR FORK OF MOHICAN RIVER; earth-type dam, 113 ft tall and 775 ft long.

Surface area
2,600 ac
Normal storage
13,500 ac-ft
Max storage
87,700 ac-ft
Drainage area
197 sq mi
Hazard class
High
Owner
USACE - Huntington District

All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation.

Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID OH00001 · Operator website

Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby

11 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Pleasant Hill Reservoir under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits. 8 facilities have a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.

  • Wooster Outdoor Ctr Dba Pleasant Hill Outdoor Camp
    Perrysville · 0.7 mi away · NPDES OH0130541
    Recent violation
  • Camp Nuhop
    Perrysville · 0.8 mi away · NPDES OH0126446
    Recent violation
  • Malabar Farm State Park Restaurant
    Lucas · 1.8 mi away · NPDES OH0137995
    Recent violation
  • Vilalge Of Perrysville Wastewater Treatment Plant
    Perrysville · 2.1 mi away · NPDES OH0021075
    Recent violation
  • Mansfield Plumbing Products Llc
    Perrysville · 2.3 mi away · NPDES OH0031208
    Recent violation
  • Odnr - Mohican State Forest Wwtp
    Perrysville · 3.1 mi away · NPDES OH0052558
    Recent violation

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.

Graded lakes near Pleasant Hill Reservoir

Pleasant Hill Reservoir has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.

Nearby Lakes in Richland County

Frequently asked questions about Pleasant Hill Reservoir

Where is Pleasant Hill Reservoir?

Pleasant Hill Reservoir is a lake in Richland County, Ohio. 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 Pleasant Hill Reservoir?

Pleasant Hill Reservoir in Richland County, Ohio is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 3 ft visibility. Surface area: 2600 acres.

Is Pleasant Hill Reservoir safe to swim in?

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.

What is the water temperature of Pleasant Hill Reservoir?

Pleasant Hill Reservoir typically sits around 75°F at the surface in September, from 388 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2021). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.

How deep is Pleasant Hill Reservoir?

No published bathymetric survey covers Pleasant Hill Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 60 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 2600 acres.

Are there boat ramps on Pleasant Hill Reservoir?

Pleasant Hill Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Pleasant Hill Lake. Public access is listed as yes.

Are there campgrounds on Pleasant Hill Reservoir?

Pleasant Hill Reservoir has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Pleasant Hill Lake Park Campground. 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.

Where this data comes from

6 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2021. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • Ohio Lake Management Society (Volunteer)OLMS6 samples · 2021
Monitoring station identifiers (2)

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

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

Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles