Scott State Fishing Lake
Scott County, KansasView mapDirections
KDHE publishes the water-quality measurements for Scott State Fishing Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Noxious aquatic plants
- 13 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Scott State Fishing Lake in Scott County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 53.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 25.8 µg/L.
Scott State Fishing Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Scott County, Kansas with an estimated average depth of about 13 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KDHE, last sampled 2016-07-05. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Scott State Fishing Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyRecreation 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. Scott State Fishing Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for noxious aquatic plants, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Scott State Fishing Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Scott State Fishing Lake
These are the measurements KDHE publishes for Scott State Fishing 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 3.1 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 53.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 25.8 µg/L. TSI 62.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.1ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 53.5µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 25.8µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 62 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Scott State Fishing Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~13 ft est.
Public access
Yes
Listed by KDHE
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kansas has not published bathymetry for Scott State Fishing Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
940 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
64 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
2.2 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
2,828 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
- Lake ScottPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Scott State Fishing Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Scott State Fishing Lake in Scott County, Kansas — 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 Scott State Fishing Lake are listed below.
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Fishing Scott State Fishing Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2013–2016). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+11.5 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+11.4 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Scott State Fishing Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Scott Dam (completed 1926) on the Ladder Creek, 33 ft tall and 1,100 ft long.
- Normal storage
- 930 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 1,630 ac-ft
- Hazard class
- Low
- Owner
- KANSAS DEPT OF WILDLIFE PARKS & TOURISM
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KS00894 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.07 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Scott State Fishing Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Drinking water, Aquatic life, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KS-LM011201 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Scott County
Frequently asked questions about Scott State Fishing Lake
Where is Scott State Fishing Lake?
- Scott State Fishing Lake is a lake in Scott County, Kansas. Its water-quality measurements are published by KDHE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Scott State Fishing Lake?
- Scott State Fishing Lake in Scott County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 53.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 25.8 µg/L.
Is Scott State Fishing Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Scott State Fishing Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for noxious aquatic plants, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Scott State Fishing Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Scott State Fishing Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 13 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Are there boat ramps on Scott State Fishing Lake?
- Scott State Fishing Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Lake Scott. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Scott State Fishing Lake?
- Scott State Fishing Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Kansas's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
10 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2013–2016. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Kansas Department Of Health And Environment
21KAN001_WQX10 samples · 2013–2016
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk depth
- 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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory