Recapture Reservoir
San Juan County, UtahView mapDirections
Utah DWQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Recapture Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Oligotrophic
- Impaired · Oxygen depletion (low DO)
Recapture Reservoir in San Juan County, Utah has water-quality measurements published by Utah DWQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 8.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 15.1 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 1.7 µg/L.
Recapture Reservoir is a cold, clear oligotrophic lake in San Juan County, Utah. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 9 other monitored lakes in San Juan County, Recapture Reservoir ranks #1 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Utah DWQ, last sampled 2025-08-26. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
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. Recapture Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO), temperature. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Recapture Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Utah Division of Water Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Recapture Reservoir
These are the measurements Utah DWQ publishes for Recapture Reservoir, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8.9 ft. Phosphorus 15.1 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 1.7 µg/L. TSI 42.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 8.9ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 15.1µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 1.7µg/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. | 42 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
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Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
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Fishing Recapture Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2013–2025).
Water clarity
Worsening6 years
Phosphorus
Improving-0.87 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-0.1 µg/L/yr3 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Recapture Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Recapture Creek (completed 1984), built primarily for irrigation on the Recapture Creek; earth-type dam, 142 ft tall and 2,900 ft long.
- Normal storage
- 8,820 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 12,400 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 61 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- SAN JUAN WATER CONSERVANCY DISTRICT
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID UT00517 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.37 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Recapture Reservoir is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit UT-L-14080201-007_00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in San Juan County
Frequently asked questions about Recapture Reservoir
Where is Recapture Reservoir?
- Recapture Reservoir is a lake in San Juan County, Utah. Its water-quality measurements are published by Utah DWQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Recapture Reservoir?
- Recapture Reservoir in San Juan County, Utah has water-quality measurements published by Utah DWQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 8.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 15.1 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 1.7 µg/L.
Is Recapture Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Recapture Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO), temperature. Check local advisories before you swim.
Explore Recapture Reservoir across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
71 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2012–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Utah Department Of Environmental Quality
UTAHDWQ_WQX71 samples · 2012–2025
Analytical methods
- Field Measurements
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database