Cams Wharf flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Cams Wharf
(Lake Macquarie, NSW) - 0.83 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
0.83 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Cams Wharf'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 Cams Wharf
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
Night movements: not established - night is sampled as often as day, but too few night flights have been seen here to conclude either way.
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.
Cams Wharf at a glance
How Cams Wharf is zoned
Buying in Cams Wharf? 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 0.83 km², Cams Wharf is highly constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 90% is flagged bushfire-prone. There is 1 heritage-listed site on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Environmental Conservation. The median lot measures about 183 m² across 249 parcels.
Who lives in Cams Wharf
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Cams Wharf 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 953, and decile 3 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Cams Wharf's 182 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Swansea - Caves Beach, the wider ABS statistical area containing Cams Wharf. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Cams Wharf itself.
11,100 in 2001 to 13,147 in 2025, up 18%.
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.
Cams Wharf 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 Cams Wharf 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 24% of Cams Wharf. 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 Cams Wharf lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Cams Wharf planning - frequently asked
Is Cams Wharf flood-prone?
Flood mapping covers Cams Wharf and less than 1% of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay (the council-wide suburb average is 7%).
Is Cams Wharf bushfire-prone?
Around 90% of Cams Wharf is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Lake Macquarie average of 65%.
Is Cams Wharf under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 24% of Cams Wharf, and over about 32% 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 500 ft, with an average of 3,500 ft. 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 Cams Wharf?
The dominant planning zone in Cams Wharf is Environmental Conservation, though the suburb also includes Primary Production Small Lots and Tourist.
Does Cams Wharf have heritage-listed places?
Cams Wharf has 1 heritage-listed place on record.
What is the typical lot size in Cams Wharf?
Across 249 surveyed parcels in Cams Wharf, the median lot size is about 183 m².
Does Cams Wharf have a train station?
There is no train station inside Cams Wharf itself. The suburb is served by 4 bus stops.
What is the population of Cams Wharf?
At the 2021 Census Cams Wharf had 182 usual residents, with a median age of 56 and an average household size of 2.1 people. The wider Swansea - Caves Beach statistical area, which contains Cams Wharf, went from 11,100 people in 2001 to 13,147 in 2025, up 18%.
Is Cams Wharf an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Cams Wharf scores 953 and sits in decile 4 of 10 nationally and decile 3 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Cams Wharf?
Median household income in Cams Wharf was $1,385 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,636 for the typical suburb in Lake Macquarie. Median rent was $430 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,400 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murrays Beach | 1.0 km | 0% | 91% |
| Pinny Beach | 1.9 km | Not mapped | 100% |
| Nords Wharf | 2.4 km | 4% | 88% |
| Catherine Hill Bay | 2.9 km | Not mapped | 94% |
| Point Wolstoncroft Central Coast |
3.0 km | 29% | 100% |
| Caves Beach | 3.0 km | Not mapped | 50% |
| Gwandalan Central Coast |
3.6 km | 14% | 60% |
| Swansea | 4.5 km | Not mapped | 39% |
| Moonee | 5.0 km | Not mapped | 94% |
| Crangan Bay | 5.1 km | 7% | 100% |