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LakeQuality

Polk-Fauna Lake

Polk County, FloridaView mapDirections

Florida DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Polk-Fauna Lake. Here is what has been measured.

Clarity
3 ft
Typical for Florida
Secchi · sampled 2022
Phosphorus
142 µg/L
More phosphorus than most
Measured by Florida DEP
Type
Eutrophic
Trophic class
Trend
Worsening
5 years of samples
  • Eutrophic
  • Impaired · Algal growth

Polk-Fauna Lake in Polk County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 142 µg/L.

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Polk-Fauna Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Polk County, Florida. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 176 other monitored lakes in Polk County, Polk-Fauna Lake ranks #126 for water quality.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, FDEP, last sampled 2022-09-13. Methodology: how these readings are compared.

Swimming conditions

Readings only

Recreation use not supported

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. Polk-Fauna Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth. Check local advisories before you swim.

Whether Polk-Fauna Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.

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Water quality measurements for Polk-Fauna Lake

These are the measurements Florida DEP publishes for Polk-Fauna Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.

Very murky, less than 3 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 142 µg/L. TSI 68.

Water quality readings
MeasureReadingWhere it sits
Water clarity (Secchi depth)3ftMeasured, not scored

How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer.

Total phosphorus142µg/LPoor
GoodFairPoor
Chlorophyll-a (algae)No reading

The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water.

Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a.68Eutrophic
OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic

High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity

Ask about Polk-Fauna Lake

Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.

Stays via Stay22

Stays near Polk-Fauna Lake

Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Polk-Fauna Lake in Polk County, Florida — 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 Polk-Fauna Lake are listed below.

Top-rated places to stay near Polk-Fauna Lake

Prices for Oct 16–18, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.

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Fishing Polk-Fauna Lake

Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2024).

  • Water clarity

    Worsening

    5 years

  • Phosphorus

    Worsening

    +14.65 µg/L/yr5 years

See year-by-year chart →

EPA Impairment Status

Polk-Fauna Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).

Causes of impairment

Algal growth

Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life, Recreation.

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit FL1623X · Official waterbody report

Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby

7 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Polk-Fauna Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits, including 7 classified by the EPA as major dischargers.

  • Fdot District 1 - Sarasota
    Bartow · 2 mi away · NPDES FLS266167
    Major
  • Fdot District 1 - Lee
    Bartow · 2 mi away · NPDES FLS266965
    Major
  • Polk Co & Co App - MS4
    Bartow · 2.2 mi away · NPDES FLS000015
    Major
  • Fdot District 1 - Polk
    Bartow · 2.2 mi away · NPDES FLS266779
    Major
  • Fdot District 1 - Manatee
    Bartow · 2.2 mi away · NPDES FLS267368
    Major
  • U S Agri-Chemicals Corporation - Bartow Chemical Plant
    Bartow · 2.3 mi away · NPDES FL0001961
    Major

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 Polk County

Frequently asked questions about Polk-Fauna Lake

Where is Polk-Fauna Lake?

Polk-Fauna Lake is a lake in Polk County, Florida. Its water-quality measurements are published by Florida DEP and shown on this page as reported.

What is the water quality of Polk-Fauna Lake?

Polk-Fauna Lake in Polk County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 142 µg/L.

Measurements on this page ↑

Is Polk-Fauna Lake safe to swim in?

Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Polk-Fauna Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth. Check local advisories before you swim.

Swimming on this page ↑

Where this data comes from

153 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2020–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • FLORIDA LAKEWATCH21FLKWAT_WQX153 samples · 2020–2022
Monitoring station identifiers (3)

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)