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LakeQuality

Waukomis Lake

Platte County, Missouri82 acresView mapDirections

B
Good

Clarity, phosphorus, and algae sit in the clean band for this region.

↑ up from C at the last regrade

Water temp
~78°F
Typical for Sep · EPA WQP
Clarity
4.7 ft
Secchi · sampled 2022
Level
No reading
No gauge
Trend
Declining
3 years of samples
  • Eutrophic
  • Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
  • #2 of 3 in the county
  • 34 ft max depth

Waukomis Lake in Platte County, Missouri has a water quality grade of B (Good). Water clarity: 4.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 26 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 7.2 µg/L. Surface area: 82 acres.

Clarity
4.7 ft
Typical in September
78°F
Max depth
~34 ft est.
Area
82 acres
Type
Eutrophic
Trend
Declining
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Waukomis Lake is a 82-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Platte County, Missouri with an estimated average depth of about 34 feet. Water quality is graded B based on 2 sampling years through 2022. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in Platte County, Waukomis Lake ranks #2 for water quality.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Missouri DNR, last sampled 2022-09-24. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.

Swimming Safety

Grade only

Low algae

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

Compare the safest swimming lakes near Kansas City

Get alerts for Waukomis Lake

Water Quality Grade: B (Good)

Murky, only visible to about 4.7 ft. Phosphorus 26 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 7.2 µg/L. TSI 52. The letter is not a swimming clearance.

MetricValueGrade
Water Clarity (Secchi Depth)4.7 ftNot graded
Phosphorus26 µg/LGood
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)7.2 µg/LGood
Trophic State Index (TSI)52Eutrophic

High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity

Water Temperature

Waukomis Lake typically sits around 78°F at the surface in September. Summer average is about 82°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 83°F) and coldest in Apr (about 60°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.

Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
60°
May
69°
Jun
79°
Jul
83°
Aug
83°
Sep
78°
Oct
Nov
Dec

Typical surface water temperature by month, from 70 field readings (20102022) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Waukomis Lake water temperature breakdown →

Lake Details

CharacteristicValue
Maximum Depth~34 ft est.
Average Depth~12 ft est.
Surface Area82 acres

Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Missouri has not published bathymetry for Waukomis Lake.

Lake Size & Watershed

Watershed (drainage) area
2 sq mi
Shoreline
1.8 mi
Elevation
951 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.

Fishing Waukomis Lake

Based on 3 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).

MetricTrendChange/YearYears
Water Clarity Declining-0.035 m/yr3
Phosphorus Declining+3 µg/L/yr3
Chlorophyll-a Declining+0.85 µg/L/yr3

Reservoir Info (USACE NID)

Waukomis Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Waukomis Dam (completed 1968), built primarily for recreation on the TR LINE CREEK; earth-type dam, 68 ft tall and 785 ft long.

Surface area
82 ac
Normal storage
2,292 ac-ft
Max storage
2,292 ac-ft
Drainage area
2.04 sq mi
Hazard class
High
Owner
LAKE WAUKOMIS HOME ASSN

Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID MO10691 · Operator website

EPA Impairment Status

Waukomis Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).

Causes of impairment

Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MO_7072.00 · Official waterbody report

County Ranking

Ranked #2 of 3 lakes in Platte County

Nearby Lakes With Higher Grades

Waukomis Lake holds Grade B. One nearby lake has a higher nutrient-and-algae grade — useful for a swim day, not a reason to skip lodging here.

See full comparison →

Nearby Lakes in Platte County

Frequently asked questions about Waukomis Lake

Where is Waukomis Lake?

Waukomis Lake is a lake in Platte County, Missouri. LakeQuality grades it B for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.

What is the water quality grade for Waukomis Lake?

Waukomis Lake in Platte County, Missouri has a water quality grade of B (Good). Water clarity: 4.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 26 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 7.2 µg/L. Surface area: 82 acres.

Is Waukomis Lake safe to swim in?

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

What is the water temperature of Waukomis Lake?

Waukomis Lake typically sits around 78°F at the surface in September, from 70 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2022). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.

How deep is Waukomis Lake?

No published bathymetric survey covers Waukomis Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 34 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 82 acres.

Where this data comes from

60 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2020–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • Univ. of Missouri, ColumbiaUMC57 samples · 2020–2022
  • Missouri Dept. of Natural ResourcesMDNR3 samples · 2020

Analytical methods

  • Depth, Secchi disk in meters
  • 4500 P E ~ Phosphorus in Water by Colorimetry- Ascorbic Acid Method
  • 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
  • Nitrogen and Phosphorus, Total, Whole-water, Alkaline Persulfate Digest
Monitoring station identifiers (2)

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)