Townsend Lake
Oakland County, Michigan417 acresView mapDirections
EGLE publishes the water-quality measurements for Townsend Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 55 ft max depth
- Limited data
Townsend Lake in Oakland County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 55 ft. Surface area: 417 acres.
Townsend Lake is a 417-acre lake in Oakland County, Michigan with a maximum depth of 55 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 1 documented fish species including Lake herring.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, EGLE, last sampled 2018-09-16. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Townsend Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water12 ft of visibility
- Deep water55 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Townsend Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Townsend Lake
These are the measurements EGLE publishes for Townsend Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 12 ft. TSI 41.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 12ft | 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. | 41 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Townsend Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
55 ft
Surface area
417 acres
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Stays near Townsend Lake
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Fish Species
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Fishing Townsend Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 7 years of monitoring (2016–2023).
Water clarity
Stable7 years
Phosphorus
Stable-0.04 µg/L/yr7 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.6 µg/L/yr7 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Townsend Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Waterford Multi-Lakes Level Control (completed 1973), built primarily for recreation on the Clinton River; earth-type dam, 12 ft tall and 300 ft long.
- Surface area
- 417 ac
- Normal storage
- 2,000 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 3,800 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 37 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- Oakland County Drain Commissioner
All listed purposes: Recreation;Other.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MI00275 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.55 km)
Nearby Lakes in Oakland County
Frequently asked questions about Townsend Lake
Where is Townsend Lake?
- Townsend Lake is a lake in Oakland County, Michigan. Its water-quality measurements are published by EGLE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Townsend Lake?
- Townsend Lake in Oakland County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12 ft visibility. Maximum depth: 55 ft. Surface area: 417 acres.
Is Townsend Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Townsend Lake?
- Townsend Lake has a maximum depth of 55 feet. The lake covers 417 acres.
What fish are in Townsend Lake?
- Fish species found in Townsend Lake include Lake herring. Townsend Lake is located in Oakland County, Michigan.
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Where this data comes from
8 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2018. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-26.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS8 samples · 2018
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.