Lizard Lake IA 04-UDM-1281

Pocahontas County S22T91NR34W 4 mi SW of Gilmore City.

This is a DRAFT assessment

Draft assessments may change without notice

Open Data Collection Period Modal

For purposes of developing stream/river water quality assessments for integrated reporting, three years of water quality data are typically used for both conventional pollutant parameters (e.g., indicator bacteria) and the less frequently monitored toxic parameters (e.g., toxic metals). Since the 2004 IR cycle, DNR has used a three-year data gathering period for streams, rivers, and beaches. For most assessments, the use of three years of data increases the number of samples upon which the decision on use support is based and helps address the problem of weather-related year-to-year fluctuations in water quality.

Due to the lower sampling frequency in Iowa’s ambient lake, biological, fish kill, and fish tissue monitoring programs, five years of data are used for developing IR assessments and for identifying Section 303(d) listings.

Data Type	Data Timeframe
Beach Sampling Data	CY 2022 - 2024
Stream/River Water Quality Data	CY 2022 - 2024
Lake Water Quality Data	CY 2020 - 2024
Biological Sampling Data	CY 2020 - 2024*
Fish Kill Data	CY 2020 - 2024
Fish Tissue Sampling Data	CY 2020 - 2024
Continuous Dissolved Oxygen Sampling Data	CY 2020 - 2024
*Biological sites sampled in both 2019 and 2023 were also assessed.

Open Segment Map
View 2026 assessment summary page

Cycle: 2026
Current Phase: Public Comment
Overall IR: 5 - Water is impaired or threatened and a TMDL is needed.
Trophic: Hypereutrophic
Trend: Improving
Trend Comment: Suspended solids and Chloryphll a have be reduced in this system due to restoration practices.
Created: 10/27/2025 3:11:37 PM
Updated: 1/7/2026 2:17:33 PM

Use Support

Class BLW

Aquatic Life - Lakes and wetlands

Not Supported

Support Level

Not Supported

Impairment Code

5a - Pollutant-caused impairment. TMDL needed.

Cause Magnitude

Moderate

Status

Continuing

Source

Unknown: Source Unknown

Source Confidence

N/A

Cycle Added

2024

Impairment Rationale

Significantly > 10% of samples fail to meet criterion

Data Source

Ambient monitoring: Iowa DNR-shallow lakes & wetlands

TMDL Priority

Tier IV

Class HH

Human Health -

Not Assessed

Impairment Delistings

No delistings for this assessment cycle.

Documentation

Assessment Summary

The Class BLW use remains assessed (monitored) as "not supported" due to violations of the Class BLW criterion for pH. All other designated uses remain “not assessed.”

Assessment Explanation

Data Sources:

Data Source	Data Source ID	Data Type	Data Age	Site ID	Site Name	Site Description
Iowa DNR	6	WQ	CY 2018-2022	22760001	Lizard Lake

Class BLW – Shallow Lake TSI:

Site ID	Data Source ID	Parameter Name	# Samples / # Years	Minimum Value	Maximum Value	Median Value	Median TSI Violation?	Assessment Type	Support Level
22760001	6	Chlorophyll a TSI	18 / 4	31	61	48	NO	MONITORED	FULL

Class BLW - Binomial Parameters:

Site ID	Data Source ID	Parameter Name	# Samples / # Years	Minimum Value	Maximum Value	Mean Value	# Violations	# Acute / Chronic Violations	Violations needed for impairment	Violates Significantly >10% Rule?	Assessment Type	Support Level
22760001	6	Dissolved Oxygen	17 / 4	3.4	15.6	8.4	3	NA / NA	4	NO	MONITORED	FULL
22760001	6	pH	17 / 4	7.41	10.14	8.53	7	NA / NA	4	YES	MONITORED	NOT
22760001	6	Temperature	17 / 4	15.2	29.1	23.4	0	NA / NA	4	NO	MONITORED	FULL

Class BLW - Protection of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation:

Site ID	Data Source ID	Parameter Name	# Samples / # Years	Minimum Value	Maximum Value	Median Value	Median Value >= SAV	Assessment Type	Support Level
22760001	6	Total suspended solids	18 / 4	0.5	16.7	2	NO	MONITORED	FULL

Guidelines for wetland assessment from the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee’s Water Quality Technical Section (2003) state that a median total suspended solids concentration during the growing season of less than 30 mg/L is necessary to provide sufficient water clarity to support the growth of submersed aquatic vegetation (SAV) in wetlands and shallow lakes. High levels of total suspended solids impede the growth of SAV. SAV is critical to the health of wetland and shallow lake ecosystems. The elimination of SAV can degrade habitat quality such that undesirable aquatic species such as cyanobacteria, common carp and fathead minnows dominate. As such, the suppression of SAV constitutes a violation of Iowa’s narrative water quality criteria protecting against undesirable or nuisance aquatic life.

Class BLW - Toxic Parameters:

Site ID	Data Source ID	Parameter Name	# Samples / # Years	Maximum Value	Mean Value	Median Value	# Acute / Chronic Violations	>1 Acute / Chronic Violation	Assessment Type	Support Level
22760001	6	Ammonia	9 / 3	0.42	0.1	0.02	0 / 0	NO		FULL

Class HH - No Data

Monitoring and Methods

Assessment Key Dates

5/15/2018

Monitoring Start

8/24/2022

Monitoring End

Methods

120

Surveys of fish and game biologists/other professionals

200

Physical/Chemical Monitoring

340

Primary producer surveys (phytoplankton/periphyton/macrophyton)