Introduction

Northland has a large number of small and generally shallow lakes. The majority of these were formed by dune activity and are therefore called ‘dune lakes'. However, some – such as Lake Ōmāpere – were formed by volcanic activity, or were artificially made.

Northland's lakes are a valuable economic, social, cultural and environmental resource.

Lake Mokeno on the Poutō Peninsula.

The Northland Lake Water Quality Monitoring Network (LWQMN) was set up by the council in 2005 as a means of collecting information on water quality in the region's lakes, and monitoring change over time.

The programme includes 28 lakes in the Kai Iwi, Aupōuri, central/Karikari and Poutō lake groups. These lakes are sampled every three months to test for a range of properties including temperature, nutrients and water clarity.