Swift Creek Lake Sta
Chesterfield County, Virginia150 acresView mapDirections
Nutrients and algae run well above the regional average.
- Hypereutrophic
- Impaired · Oxygen depletion (low DO)
- #7 of 7 in the county
- 25 ft max depth
Swift Creek Lake Sta in Chesterfield County, Virginia has a water quality grade of F (Algae-prone). Water clarity: 1.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 60 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 35 µg/L. Surface area: 150 acres.
- Clarity
- 1.6 ft
- Max depth
- ~25 ft est.
- Area
- 150 acres
- Type
- Hypereutrophic
- Phosphorus
- 60 µg/L
- Chlorophyll-a
- 35 µg/L
- Trend
- ↓ Declining
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Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Swift Creek Lake Sta in Chesterfield County, Virginia — 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 grade measures nutrients and algae, not lodging — cabins and rentals around Swift Creek Lake Sta are listed below.
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Watch Swift Creek Lake Sta’s letter
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Swift Creek Lake Sta is a 150-acre highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Chesterfield County, Virginia with an estimated average depth of about 25 feet. Water quality is graded F based on 2 sampling years through 2026. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 6 other monitored lakes in Chesterfield County, Swift Creek Lake Sta ranks #7 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2026-07-06. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
Swimming Safety
Grade onlyAlgae risk
Based on clarity and algae grades from past sampling — we do not hold live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
The F is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Swift Creek Lake Sta is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Water Quality Grade: F (Algae-prone)
Very murky, less than 1.6 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 60 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 35 µg/L. TSI 66. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 1.6 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 60 µg/L | Poor |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 35 µg/L | Poor |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 66 | Hypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~25 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~14 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 150 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Virginia has not published bathymetry for Swift Creek Lake Sta.
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 Swift Creek Lake Sta
Water Quality Trend: ↓ Declining
Based on 2 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↓ Declining | -0.1 m/yr | 2 |
| Phosphorus | ↓ Declining | +30 µg/L/yr | 2 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↓ Declining | +11.1 µg/L/yr | 2 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Swift Creek Lake Sta is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Swift Creek Dam, built primarily for recreation on the Swift Creek; gravity-type dam, 31 ft tall and 163 ft long.
- Surface area
- 150 ac
- Normal storage
- 675 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 7,564 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 95.32 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Department of Conservation & Recreation - Division of State Parks
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA041004 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.22 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Swift Creek Lake Sta is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VAP-J17L_SFT01A98 · Official waterbody report · Matched by proximity (1.47 km)
County Ranking
Ranked #7 of 7 lakes in Chesterfield County
Nearby Lakes With Higher Grades
Swift Creek Lake Sta holds Grade F. 3 nearby lakes hold higher nutrient-and-algae grades — useful for a swim day, not a reason to skip lodging here.
Nearby Lakes in Chesterfield County
Frequently asked questions about Swift Creek Lake Sta
Where is Swift Creek Lake Sta?
- Swift Creek Lake Sta is a lake in Chesterfield County, Virginia. LakeQuality grades it F for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Swift Creek Lake Sta?
- Swift Creek Lake Sta in Chesterfield County, Virginia has a water quality grade of F (Algae-prone). Water clarity: 1.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 60 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 35 µg/L. Surface area: 150 acres.
Is Swift Creek Lake Sta safe to swim in?
- The F is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Swift Creek Lake Sta is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Swift Creek Lake Sta?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Swift Creek Lake Sta, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 25 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 150 acres.
Explore Swift Creek Lake Sta across LakeQuality
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Virginia's top lakes, each with its grade
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
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Where this data comes from
44 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2025–2026. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB44 samples · 2025–2026
Analytical methods
- Tyler, John. 1968. The secchi disk, Limnology and Oceanograpy, 13(1):1-6.
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 446.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophylls and Pheopigments in Phytoplankton by Spectrophotometry
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)