2006 Lake Assessment of Lake Seven (Scalp) (56-0358) Otter Tail County, Minnesota

Lake Seven is located in north-central Otter Tail County within the Otter Tail River watershed. This lake is approximately 2 miles north of Vergas, MN in the North Central Hardwood Forest Ecoregion (NCHF). A lake water quality model was used to estimate the water quality of the lakes based on morphometry and watershed characteristics. This model provides a means to compare the measured water quality of the lake relative to the predicted water quality. The modeling application Minnesota Lake Eutrophication Analysis Procedure (MINLEAP) predicted a summer-mean total phosphorus concentration of 22 μg/L using NCHF ecoregion inputs. This is significantly different than the observed total phosphorus concentration of 9 μg/L for Lake Seven. These results indicated that the water quality of Lake Seven exceeds expected water quality based on MINLEAP (for lakes of similar size, depth, and region of the state).