Rust Pond
Carroll County, New Hampshire242 acresView mapDirections
NHDES publishes the water-quality measurements for Rust Pond. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- Public access
- Limited data
Rust Pond in Carroll County, New Hampshire has water-quality measurements published by NHDES, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Surface area: 242 acres.
Rust Pond is a 242-acre lake in Carroll County, New Hampshire. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, your state environmental agency, last sampled 2023-07-24. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Rust Pond is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water18 ft of visibility
Swimming conditions
No readingRecreation use not supported
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Rust Pond is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Rust Pond is safe to swim in today is a call for the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Rust Pond
These are the measurements NHDES publishes for Rust Pond, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Crystal clear, you can see 18 ft down. TSI 35.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 18ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| 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. | 35 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Rust Pond
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Surface area
242 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by NHDES
No bathymetric survey has been published for Rust Pond, so its depth is not documented here.
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Stays near Rust Pond
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Fishing Rust Pond
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Rust Pond is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Rust Pond Dam, built primarily for recreation on the Perry Brook; concrete-type dam, 8 ft tall and 80 ft long.
- Surface area
- 242 ac
- Normal storage
- 6,886 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 7,464 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 2.67 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- RUST POND ASSOC
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NH00113 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Rust Pond 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: Fish consumption, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit NHLAK700020101-07-01 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Carroll County
Frequently asked questions about Rust Pond
Where is Rust Pond?
- Rust Pond is a lake in Carroll County, New Hampshire. Its water-quality measurements are published by NHDES and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Rust Pond?
- Rust Pond in Carroll County, New Hampshire has water-quality measurements published by NHDES, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 18 ft visibility. Surface area: 242 acres.
Is Rust Pond safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Rust Pond is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Can I fish at Rust Pond?
- Public access to Rust Pond is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by New Hampshire's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
3 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-21.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS3 samples · 2020–2023
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