Oneida, Vilas
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Fish and Aquatic Life
Overview
, in the Upper Tomahawk River Watershed, is a 13.30 acre lake that falls in Oneida and Vilas Counties. This lake is managed for fishing and swimming and is currently not considered impaired.
Date 2011
Author Aquatic Biologist
Historical Description
Source: 1963, Surface Water Resources of Vilas County Snake Lake, T-40-N, R-6-E, Sections 35 and 36, Area = 12 Surface Acres, Maximum Depth = 22 feet.
Snake Lake is a seepage lake of very high fertility having turbid water with low transparency. Bottom materials consist of muck and sand, with gravel. There is a small outlet stream. The fishery afforded by this lake is of the pan fish type with muskellunge, largemouth bass and walleye the known game fish present. The lake has several use problems, chiefly those of winterkill and algae bloom. These problems,however, can be attributed to the location of the domestic sewage disposal plant on the shore of this lake. At one time, domestic sewage was disposed of directly into the lake, but at this time, the domesticsewage is being held in settling fields. At any rate, the lake and land around the sewage plant are saturated and can no longer handle the effluent. This high fertility is also causing problems in nearby Arrowhead Lake. Although the creek between the lakes has been diked, this has not prevented seepage into Arrowhead. Public access to this lake is available by the use of a town road which also offers parking facilities. Public use facilities consist of one resort. There are three cottages, two restaurants, and one gas station located on the shoreline. Puddle ducks are known to make limited use of this lake on their fall migration.
Date 1963
Author Surface Water Inventory Of Wisconsin
Condition
Wisconsin has over 84,000 miles of streams, 15,000 lakes and milllions of acres of wetlands. Assessing the condition of this vast amount of water is challenging. The state's water monitoring program uses a media-based, cross-program approach to analyze water condition. An updated monitoring strategy (2015-2020) is now available. Compliance with Clean Water Act fishable, swimmable standards are located in the Executive Summary of Water Condition in 2018. See also the 'monitoring and projects' tab.
Reports
Management Goals
Wisconsin's Water Quality Standards provide qualitative and quantitative goals for waters that are protective of Fishable, Swimmable conditions [Learn more]. Waters that do not meet water quality standards are considered impaired and restoration actions are planned and carried out until the water is once again fishable and swimmable
Management goals can include creation or implementation of a Total Maximum Daily Load analysis, a Nine Key Element Plan, or other restoration work, education and outreach and more. If specific recommendations exist for this water, they will be displayed below online.
Monitoring
Monitoring the condition of a river, stream, or lake includes gathering physical, chemical, biological, and habitat data. Comprehensive studies often gather all these parameters in great detail, while lighter assessment events will involve sampling physical, chemical and biological data such as macroinvertebrates. Aquatic macroinvertebrates and fish communities integrate watershed or catchment condition, providing great insight into overall ecosystem health. Chemical and habitat parameters tell researchers more about human induced problems including contaminated runoff, point source dischargers, or habitat issues that foster or limit the potential of aquatic communities to thrive in a given area. Wisconsin's Water Monitoring Strategy was recenty updated.
Grants and Management Projects
Monitoring Projects
| WBIC | Official Waterbody Name | Station ID | Station Name | Earliest Fieldwork Date | Latest Fieldwork Date | View Station | View Data |
|---|
| 1541700 | Snake Lake | 10037704 | Snake Lake nearshore | 8/20/2012 | 8/20/2012 | Map | Data |
| 1541700 | Snake Lake | 10006150 | Snake Lake | 7/27/1999 | 8/7/2012 | Map | Data |
| 1541700 | Snake Lake | 10037618 | Snake Lake | 8/20/2012 | 8/20/2012 | Map | Data |
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Watershed Characteristics
Snake Lake is located in the Upper Tomahawk River watershed which is 186.83 mi². Land use in the watershed is primarily forest (67%), wetland (16%) and a mix of open (14%) and other uses (3.10%). This watershed has 139.00 stream miles, 17,609.90 lake acres and 20,470.21 wetland acres.
Nonpoint Source Characteristics
This watershed is ranked High for runoff impacts on streams, High for runoff impacts on lakes and Low for runoff impacts on groundwater and therefore has an overall rank of Low. This value can be used in ranking the watershed or individual waterbodies for grant funding under state and county programs.However, all waters are affected by diffuse pollutant sources regardless of initial water quality. Applications for specific runoff projects under state or county grant programs may be pursued. For more information, go to surface water program grants.