Willow Creek Reservoir
Sarpy County, NebraskaView mapDirections
Nebraska DEE publishes the water-quality measurements for Willow Creek Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Hypereutrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
Willow Creek Reservoir in Sarpy County, Nebraska has water-quality measurements published by Nebraska DEE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 96.7 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 65.6 µg/L.
Willow Creek Reservoir is a highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Sarpy County, Nebraska. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 5 other monitored lakes in Sarpy County, Willow Creek Reservoir ranks #5 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NDEE, last sampled 2024-09-05. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyAlgae risk
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. Willow Creek Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Willow Creek Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Willow Creek Reservoir
These are the measurements Nebraska DEE publishes for Willow Creek Reservoir, 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 1.5 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 96.7 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 65.6 µg/L. TSI 71.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 1.5ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 96.7µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 65.6µg/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. | 71 | Hypereutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
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Stays near Willow Creek Reservoir
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Willow Creek Reservoir in Sarpy County, Nebraska — 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 Willow Creek Reservoir are listed below.
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Fishing Willow Creek Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 13 years of monitoring (2012–2024).
Water clarity
Improving13 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+3.04 µg/L/yr5 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-6.56 µg/L/yr12 years
EPA Impairment Status
Willow Creek Reservoir is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit NE-MT1-L0027 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Sarpy County
Frequently asked questions about Willow Creek Reservoir
Where is Willow Creek Reservoir?
- Willow Creek Reservoir is a lake in Sarpy County, Nebraska. Its water-quality measurements are published by Nebraska DEE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Willow Creek Reservoir?
- Willow Creek Reservoir in Sarpy County, Nebraska has water-quality measurements published by Nebraska DEE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 96.7 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 65.6 µg/L.
Is Willow Creek Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Willow Creek Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
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Where this data comes from
157 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2012–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy
21NEB001_WQX157 samples · 2012–2024
Analytical methods
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 447.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll a and b in phytoplankton by HPLC/UV
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