Poor Lake
Gogebic County, Michigan107 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 · Mercury
- 20 ft max depth
- Limited data
Poor Lake in Gogebic County, Michigan is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 9 ft visibility. Surface area: 107.1 acres.
- Clarity
- 9 ft
- Max depth
- ~20 ft est.
- Area
- 107 acres
- Trend
- → Stable
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Watch Poor Lake’s letter
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Why Poor Lake has no grade
Poor 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, Poor Lake is Not Rated — not an F. Its 9-foot median from 120 readings collected 2016–2022 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 EGLE and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.
Poor Lake is a 107-acre lake in Gogebic County, Michigan with an estimated average depth of about 20 feet. Water clarity is improving over recent sampling years.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, EGLE, last sampled 2022-09-12. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
Swimming Safety
Not ratedLimited data
The letter is not a swimming clearance. Poor Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water quality measurements for Poor Lake
These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.
Moderate clarity, visible to about 9 ft. TSI 45.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 9 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 45 | Mesotrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~20 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~13 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 107 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Michigan has not published bathymetry for Poor 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 Poor Lake
Water Quality Trend: → Stable
Based on 7 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↑ Improving | +0.426 m/yr | 7 |
| Phosphorus | ↓ Declining | +0.6 µg/L/yr | 7 |
EPA Impairment Status
Poor Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MI040201020101-03 · Official waterbody report · Matched by proximity (2.37 km)
Graded lakes near Poor Lake
Poor Lake has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.
Nearby Lakes in Gogebic County
Frequently asked questions about Poor Lake
Where is Poor Lake?
- Poor Lake is a lake in Gogebic County, Michigan. 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 Poor Lake?
- Poor Lake in Gogebic County, Michigan is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 9 ft visibility. Surface area: 107.1 acres.
Is Poor Lake safe to swim in?
- The letter is not a swimming clearance. Poor Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Poor Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Poor Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 20 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 107.1 acres.
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Where this data comes from
120 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2016–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-26.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS120 samples · 2016–2022
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)