Cakora Lagoon is situated at Brooms Head on the north coast of New South Wales. It is classed as a lagoon which has an intermittently closed entrance.
Cakora Lagoon
Our water quality monitoring program has shown Cakora Lagoon to have good water quality. Find out more about the estuary and its unique features.
Water quality
As part of our water quality monitoring program we assess the water quality and ecosystem health of an estuary using a range of relevant indicators. We sample a subset of the estuaries located between the Queensland border and Taree every 3 years. The most recent sampling in Cakora Lagoon was completed over the 2021–22 summer when 2 sites were sampled on a monthly basis.
This report card represents 2 water quality indicators that we routinely measure: the amount of algae present and water clarity. Low levels of these 2 indicators equate with good water quality.
The report card shows the condition of the estuary was good with:
- algae abundance graded excellent (A)
- water clarity graded fair (C)
- overall estuary health graded good (B).
Find out more about our estuary report cards and what each grade means. Read our sampling, data analysis and reporting protocols and find out how we calculate these grades.
We have monitored water quality in Cakora Lagoon since 2009. This table shows the water quality grades for this estuary over that time.
Grades for algae, water clarity and overall are represented as:
- A – excellent
- B – good
- C – fair
- D – poor
- E – very poor.
Physical characteristics
Estuary type: Lagoon
Entrance location |
Latitude (ºS) | –29.6 |
---|---|---|
Longitude (ºE) | 153.33 | |
Catchment area (km2) | 12.3 | |
Estuary area (km2) | 0.4 | |
Estuary volume (ML) | 113.5 | |
Average depth (m) | 0.5 |
Water depth and survey data
Bathymetric and coastal topography data for this estuary are available in our data portal.
Land use
The catchment of Cakora Lagoon relatively undisturbed as it is protected by Yuraygir National Park. Urban development around the small town of Brooms Head represents a small fraction of the land use. An unsealed road to Sandon passes within this small catchment.
National and marine park
- Cakora Lagoon is located within Yuraygir National Park.
- There are no marine parks associated with this estuary.
Community involvement
- Landcare groups in the Clarence Valley are supported by Clarence Landcare, North Coast Local Land Services and the Clarence Valley Council. These volunteer groups, including one at Brooms Head, work to conserve and manage coastal biodiversity.
Local government management
Local councils manage estuaries within their area unless the estuary is attached to a marine park. Clarence Valley Council manage this estuary.