Landslip hazard in Tasmania: council map vs report

Tasmania maps landslip hazard as a planning overlay, and you can check it three ways before you buy: the free statewide Landslide Planning Map on the LIST, a property-specific certificate or advice from the local council, and a consolidated desktop report that pulls the mapping together with the other constraints on the lot. Each answers a different question. The free map tells you whether a hazard band touches the land. A council certificate confirms what the planning scheme requires of a development application. A desktop report puts the landslip band next to zoning, bushfire, flood and heritage so you can read the whole site at once.

Landslip hazard matters in Tasmania because so much of the settled land sits on slopes. Parts of the Hobart foothills, the dolerite and mudstone slopes around Lenah Valley, West Hobart and Fern Tree, the Launceston hills, and the coastal escarpments have known instability. The Tasmanian Planning Scheme carries a Landslip Hazard Code, and land inside a mapped hazard band triggers assessment when you build or subdivide.

What the three options are

The LIST Landslide Planning Map

The LIST (Land Information System Tasmania) is the state's public mapping portal. Its Landslide Planning Map shows the landslip hazard bands used by the Tasmanian Planning Scheme, drawn from Mineral Resources Tasmania's landslide susceptibility mapping. You type an address or pan to the lot and see whether it falls in a low, medium or active landslide hazard area. It is free and immediate.

What it does not do is interpret the band for your specific proposal, or tell you what the planning scheme will ask for. It also shows one hazard at a time unless you turn on other layers manually.

A council planning certificate or advice

Every Tasmanian council can issue planning information about a property, and the section 337 certificate under the Local Government Act reports the zoning and the codes and overlays that apply to a lot. For land in a landslip hazard band, the council can confirm which code provisions are triggered and what a development application would need. This is the formal, lot-specific answer, and it is the document a planner or conveyancer relies on.

It takes time and usually carries a fee, and it reports the planning position rather than the ground conditions themselves.

A consolidated desktop report

A desktop report reads the same public mapping the LIST carries, and presents the landslip band alongside the other constraints on the lot, so you are not checking six layers separately. It is fast and cheap and good for screening. Like the LIST map, it reports what the published mapping says. It is not a geotechnical assessment and it does not certify that the slope is stable. Where a landslip band is present, the next step is a site-specific geotechnical report by an engineer, which is a separate exercise from any geotechnical desktop study.

How they compare

Axis	LIST Landslide Map	Council certificate	Desktop report
Cost	Free	Fee, varies by council	Low, fixed
Speed	Immediate	Days to weeks	Immediate
Landslip band shown	Yes	Yes	Yes
Other constraints together	No, manual layers	Codes listed, not mapped	Yes, on one page
Lot-specific planning position	No	Yes	No
Certifies ground stability	No	No	No
Best for	A quick look	The formal record	Screening before you commit

Which should you pick?

For a first screen while you are deciding whether a Hobart or Launceston hillside listing is worth an inspection, start with a desktop report or the LIST map, because both are immediate and free or cheap. The desktop report is the better first step when you want landslip read next to zoning, flood and bushfire rather than clicked through one layer at a time. If the block is on a visible slope, the signs you can read from a listing tell you a landslip check is worth doing before anything else.

Once you are serious about a lot and heading toward a contract or a development application, get the council certificate. It is the document that states, on the record, which code provisions apply and what your application must address. The free map and the desktop report inform your decision. The certificate is what your planner and conveyancer act on.

And whichever of the three flags a landslip band, treat that as the trigger for a geotechnical engineer, not the end of the enquiry. None of these three certifies that a slope is stable. They tell you the hazard is mapped there. Only a site investigation tells you what the slope will do under a house.

Common questions

How do I check if a property is in a landslip hazard area in Tasmania?

Open the LIST (Land Information System Tasmania) and view the Landslide Planning Map for the address, or request a planning certificate from the council. Both show whether the lot falls in a low, medium or active landslide hazard band under the Tasmanian Planning Scheme. The mapping comes from Mineral Resources Tasmania's landslide susceptibility data.

Does the Landslip Hazard Code stop you building in Tasmania?

No, the Landslip Hazard Code does not automatically stop you building. Land in a mapped landslip hazard band triggers assessment under the Tasmanian Planning Scheme, which usually means a geotechnical report by an engineer must accompany the development application and the design must respond to the hazard. Active landslide areas are the most constrained.

Is a landslip check the same as a soil test?

No. A landslip check tells you whether a slope instability hazard is mapped over the land, which is a planning and slope-stability question. A soil test classifies the ground for a slab under AS 2870 and measures reactivity. A steep site can need both: a geotechnical assessment for the slope and a site classification for the footing.

To see whether a Tasmanian block sits in a landslip band along with its zone, flood and bushfire, pop in your address or check out a sample report first.

LayeredGeo's Property Report pulls together public planning and site data for property due diligence across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, the ACT and Tasmania, so you can understand a place before you commit.

About this article. Published by LayeredGeo. It is general information about how property and ground conditions are assessed in Australia, not engineering, planning, legal or financial advice, and it is not specific to any property. Check anything that matters against the source dataset or a suitably qualified professional before you rely on it. If you spot something wrong, tell us at hello@layeredgeo.com.au and we will fix it.

← All articles