Volga Lake
Fayette County, Iowa135 acresView mapDirections
Iowa DNR publishes the water-quality measurements for Volga Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Hypereutrophic
- Impaired · Algal growth
- 55 ft max depth
Volga Lake in Fayette County, Iowa has water-quality measurements published by Iowa DNR, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 74 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 52.2 µg/L. Surface area: 135 acres.
Free interactive depth-contour map of Volga Lake, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 20 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Iowa DNR.
Volga Lake is a 135-acre highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Fayette County, Iowa with an estimated average depth of about 55 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Iowa DNR, last sampled 2024-10-21. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Volga Lake covers about 140 acres in Fayette County. Vrbo is where to look for cabins and lake homes around Volga Lake, and Booking.com and Expedia search hotels near the lake for your dates.
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. Volga Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for algal growth, turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Volga Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Volga Lake
These are the measurements Iowa DNR publishes for Volga 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 2.1 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 74 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 52.2 µg/L. TSI 67.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2.1ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 74µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 52.2µg/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. | 67 | Hypereutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Ask about Volga Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Volga Lake typically sits around 70°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 76°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 78°F) and coldest in May (about 62°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (62°F) to its warmest (78°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 31 field readings (2010–2023) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Volga Lake water temperature breakdown →
Lake Details
Max depth
~55 ft est.
Surface area
135 acres
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Iowa has not published bathymetry for Volga Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
7 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
2.5 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
994 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.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Volga Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Volga Lake in Fayette County, Iowa — 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 Volga Lake are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Volga Lake
Prices for Oct 23–25, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fishing Volga Lake
Water quality readings over time
3 seasons of samples on record (2022–2024). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Stable3 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+5 µg/L/yr3 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+22.65 µg/L/yr3 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Volga Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Volga Lake Dam (completed 1980), built primarily for recreation on the TR-VOLGA RIVER; earth-type dam, 45 ft tall and 1,710 ft long.
- Surface area
- 135 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,670 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 3,808 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 9 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID IA02029 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Volga 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: Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit IA 01-VOL-292 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
4 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Volga Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits. 3 facilities have a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Dnr Volga River Recreational Area WwtpFayette · 0.4 mi away · NPDES IA0082317Recent violation
- West Union City Of StpWest Union · 3.5 mi away · NPDES IA0035378Recent violation
- Fayette City Of StpFayette · 3.8 mi away · NPDES IA0027456Recent violation
- Prairie View Care FacilityFayette · 3.3 mi away · NPDES IA0061875
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Fayette County
Frequently asked questions about Volga Lake
Where is Volga Lake?
- Volga Lake is a lake in Fayette County, Iowa. Its water-quality measurements are published by Iowa DNR and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Volga Lake?
- Volga Lake in Fayette County, Iowa has water-quality measurements published by Iowa DNR, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 74 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 52.2 µg/L. Surface area: 135 acres.
Is Volga Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Volga Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for algal growth, turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Volga Lake?
- Volga Lake typically sits around 70°F at the surface in September, from 31 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2023). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Volga Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Volga Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 55 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 135 acres.
Explore Volga Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
56 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2022–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Iowa DNR Surface Water Monitoring Data
21IOWA_WQX56 samples · 2022–2024
Analytical methods
- Unknown
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- In-Vitro Determination of Chlorophyll
- ISU modification of APHA 2130-B
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
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)