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LakeQuality

Waughop Lake

Pierce County, WashingtonView mapDirections

NR
Not rated

Not Rated: one monitoring station are on record, but they measured water clarity only. LakeQuality’s A–F method grades total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity; clarity is shown, not scored.

Water temp
No reading
No gauge
Clarity
5.6 ft
Secchi · sampled 2012
Level
No reading
No gauge
Trend
Improving
2 years of samples
  • Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
  • Limited data

Waughop Lake in Pierce County, Washington is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility.

Clarity
5.6 ft
Trend
Improving
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Stays near Waughop Lake

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Watch Waughop Lake’s letter

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Why Waughop Lake has no grade

Waughop Lake has monitoring on record from one station, but only water clarity was measured. LakeQuality’s A–F letter uses total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity against EPA National Lakes Assessment condition classes. With none of those grading measurements on record, Waughop Lake is Not Rated — not an F. Its 5.6-foot median from 1 readings collected 2012 is still shown as clarity, but clarity alone cannot earn a letter.

Not Rated is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 — insufficient information. Everything below that has been measured is still reported on this page.

Sampling is run by WA Ecology and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.

Waughop Lake is a lake in Pierce County, Washington. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, WA Ecology, last sampled 2012-07-16. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.

Swimming Safety

Not rated

Limited data

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Waughop Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.

Get alerts for Waughop Lake

Water quality measurements for Waughop Lake

These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.

Murky, only visible to about 5.6 ft. TSI 52.

MetricValueGrade
Water Clarity (Secchi Depth)5.6 ftNot graded
PhosphorusNo recent samples
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No recent samples
Trophic State Index (TSI)52Eutrophic

High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity

Fishing Waughop Lake

Based on 2 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).

MetricTrendChange/YearYears
Water Clarity Improving+0.389 m/yr2

EPA Impairment Status

Waughop Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2018 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).

Causes of impairment

Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit WA17110019001213_001_001 · Official waterbody report

Graded lakes near Waughop Lake

Waughop Lake has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.

Nearby Lakes in Pierce County

Frequently asked questions about Waughop Lake

Where is Waughop Lake?

Waughop Lake is a lake in Pierce County, Washington. LakeQuality has not rated this lake (UNRATED) — no nutrient or algae measurement meets the evidence bar (at least 3 samples within 10 years).

What is the water quality grade for Waughop Lake?

Waughop Lake in Pierce County, Washington is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility.

Is Waughop Lake safe to swim in?

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Waughop Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.

Eutrophic Lakes in Washington

Where this data comes from

1 measurement from 1 monitoring station, 2012. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • North American Lake Management SocietyNALMS1 sample · 2012
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