CABARITA has scooped top honours in The Clean Beach Challenge.

There were cheers and tears of joy on Wednesday at the Cabarita Surf Lifesaving Club as Keep Australia Beautiful NSW representative Peter McLean announced Maggie's Beach as the winner of the Overall Clean Beach award for the Northern Rivers region.

The beach had been the focus of an environmental rejuvenation project, which was close to the hearts of residents of the seaside village.

Cabarita Dunecare co-ordinator Ashley Baldry said he was "over the moon" with the win.

"Work done at Maggie's Beach has brought the whole community together with a positive aim in mind," he said.

"To see their efforts given recognition is wonderful and encouraging. This has also been an avenue for showcasing the beach and drawing attention to a unique and beautiful tourist attraction."

Mr McLean said work done at Maggie's Beach was "outstanding" and reflected the essence of the awards.

"The huge combined effort and enthusiasm of the community is inspiring," he said. "The awards recognise the best practices and achievements of local people in preserving and protecting their beaches. They highlight networking, information sharing and the management of natural assets.

"People communicate over huge distances to swap ideas and strategies about their beaches.

"Despite the distances, they often find that they have the similar concerns, like erosion."

Mr McLean said Cabarita residents had had shown "exceptional community participation".

"It's a well-deserved win and one that I have been very proud to announce," he said.

The community also won the Community Partnerships and Action award and was highly commended in the Environmental Protection award, Young Legends Award and Friendly Beach Award.

Hastings Point took out the Environmental Protection Award, with Fingal Head Public School winning the Young Legends award and Byron Bay main beach taking out the Friendly Beach award.