Butterwick flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Butterwick
(Port Stephens, NSW) - 12.07 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 3 October 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
12.07 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Butterwick's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over Butterwick
Two different things, kept apart on purpose. The ANEF contour is the planning instrument - a forecast published per airport that planning schemes use to control noise-sensitive development. Observed overflight is what a sampled aircraft-tracking feed actually recorded over the suburb - where aircraft flew, how low and how often.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 2 Oct 2026
typical observed square 4 a day
Night movements: observed, lowest 3,000 ft - night is sampled as often as day, but night traffic is light, so this is a floor and no rate can be put on it.
Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.
Butterwick at a glance
How Butterwick is zoned
Buying in Butterwick? The zoning, flood and bushfire lines on the section 10.7 certificate attached to the contract are mapped controls - see our s10.7 certificate guide.
Across its 12.07 km², Butterwick is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 29% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 100% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Rural Landscape. The median lot measures about 42,461 m² across 89 parcels.
Who lives in Butterwick
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Butterwick suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.
Socio-economic standing
ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.
Score 1051, and decile 8 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Butterwick's 190 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Seaham - Woodville, the wider ABS statistical area containing Butterwick. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Butterwick itself.
4,443 in 2001 to 5,899 in 2025, up 33%.
Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.
Butterwick data sources and coverage
“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.
| Dataset | Coverage | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Flood mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Zoning | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 3 October 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.
Check a specific Butterwick address
See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.
Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 28% of Butterwick. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Butterwick lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Butterwick planning - frequently asked
Is Butterwick flood-prone?
About 29% of Butterwick falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 45%.
Is Butterwick bushfire-prone?
Around 100% of Butterwick is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Port Stephens average of 82%.
Is Butterwick under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 28% of Butterwick, and over about 79% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 2 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 1,000 ft, with an average of 3,500 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 9 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.
What is the zoning in Butterwick?
The dominant planning zone in Butterwick is Rural Landscape, though the suburb also includes Primary Production and Environmental Management.
Does Butterwick have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within Butterwick.
What is the typical lot size in Butterwick?
Across 89 surveyed parcels in Butterwick, the median lot size is about 42,461 m². There are also 3 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Butterwick have a train station?
There is no train station inside Butterwick itself. The suburb is served by 10 bus stops.
What is the population of Butterwick?
At the 2021 Census Butterwick had 190 usual residents, with a median age of 42 and an average household size of 3.1 people. The wider Seaham - Woodville statistical area, which contains Butterwick, went from 4,443 people in 2001 to 5,899 in 2025, up 33%.
Is Butterwick an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Butterwick scores 1051 and sits in decile 9 of 10 nationally and decile 8 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Butterwick?
Median household income in Butterwick was $2,666 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,421 for the typical suburb in Port Stephens. Median rent was $650 a week and the median mortgage repayment $2,275 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodville | 3.5 km | 64% | 100% |
| Duns Creek | 4.7 km | 17% | 100% |
| Wallalong | 4.8 km | 64% | 87% |
| Seaham | 5.5 km | 48% | 97% |
| Brandy Hill | 5.9 km | 39% | 100% |
| Largs Maitland |
6.9 km | 82% | 88% |
| Phoenix Park Maitland |
7.0 km | 100% | 99% |
| Mindaribba Maitland |
7.4 km | 12% | 100% |
| Bolwarra Heights Maitland |
7.8 km | 27% | 71% |
| Glen Oak | 7.9 km | 18% | 100% |