Whitewood Lake
Livingston County, Michigan68 acresView mapDirections
EGLE publishes the water-quality measurements for Whitewood Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- 50 ft max depth
Whitewood Lake in Livingston County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 10 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Maximum depth: 50 ft. Surface area: 67.6 acres.
Free interactive depth-contour map of Whitewood Lake, reaching a maximum surveyed depth of 50 ft. Toggle Depth contours to overlay the bathymetric survey lines. Contour data from Michigan DNR.
Whitewood Lake is a 68-acre mesotrophic lake in Livingston County, Michigan with a maximum depth of 50 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. The lake supports 1 documented fish species including Northern pike. Compared to the 8 other monitored lakes in Livingston County, Whitewood Lake ranks #7 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, EGLE, last sampled 2023-09-16. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Whitewood Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water10 ft of visibility
- Deep water50 ft surveyed max depth
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLow algae
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. Whitewood Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, pesticides, pFAS, pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Whitewood 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 Whitewood Lake
These are the measurements EGLE publishes for Whitewood 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 10 ft. Phosphorus 20 µg/L. TSI 46.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 10ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 20µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| 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. | 46 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Whitewood Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
50 ft
Surface area
68 acres
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
298 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
853 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS).
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Whitewood Lake
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Fish Species
Click a species to see every lake where it is documented.
Fishing Whitewood Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 9 years of monitoring (2016–2024).
Water clarity
Worsening9 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+1.24 µg/L/yr7 years
EPA Impairment Status
Whitewood Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit MI040900050307-24 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Livingston County
Frequently asked questions about Whitewood Lake
Where is Whitewood Lake?
- Whitewood Lake is a lake in Livingston County, Michigan. Its water-quality measurements are published by EGLE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Whitewood Lake?
- Whitewood Lake in Livingston County, Michigan has water-quality measurements published by EGLE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 10 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Maximum depth: 50 ft. Surface area: 67.6 acres.
Is Whitewood Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Whitewood Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, pesticides, pFAS, pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Whitewood Lake?
- Whitewood Lake has a maximum depth of 50 feet. The lake covers 67.6 acres.
What fish are in Whitewood Lake?
- Fish species found in Whitewood Lake include Northern pike. Whitewood Lake is located in Livingston County, Michigan.
Explore Whitewood Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
109 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2016–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-26.
Collected and reported by
- Michigan EGLE - MiCorps
21MICH_MICORPS109 samples · 2016–2023
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)