Kelso flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Kelso
(Bathurst Regional, NSW) - 31.96 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
31.96 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Kelso'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 Kelso
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 1 a day
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.
Kelso at a glance
How Kelso is zoned
Buying in Kelso? 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 31.96 km², Kelso is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 16% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 66% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 29 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Primary Production. The median lot measures about 872 m² across 4,726 parcels.
Who lives in Kelso
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Kelso 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 948, and decile 3 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Kelso's 10,039 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Bathurst - East, the wider ABS statistical area containing Kelso. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Kelso itself.
7,368 in 2001 to 13,565 in 2025, up 84%.
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.
Kelso 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 Kelso 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.
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 Kelso lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Kelso planning - frequently asked
Is Kelso flood-prone?
About 16% of Kelso falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 3%.
Is Kelso bushfire-prone?
Around 66% of Kelso is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Bathurst Regional average of 91%.
Is Kelso under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed over about 20% of Kelso in the period sampled, but only above 3,000 ft - the lowest measured was 7,000 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 Kelso?
The dominant planning zone in Kelso is Primary Production, though the suburb also includes General Residential and Primary Production Small Lots.
Does Kelso have heritage-listed places?
Kelso has 29 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Kelso?
Across 4,726 surveyed parcels in Kelso, the median lot size is about 872 m². There are also 44 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Kelso have a train station?
There is no train station inside Kelso itself. The suburb is served by 262 bus stops.
What is the population of Kelso?
At the 2021 Census Kelso had 10,039 usual residents, with a median age of 36 and an average household size of 2.7 people. The wider Bathurst - East statistical area, which contains Kelso, went from 7,368 people in 2001 to 13,565 in 2025, up 84%.
Is Kelso an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Kelso scores 948 and sits in decile 3 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 Kelso?
Median household income in Kelso was $1,737 a week at the 2021 Census, against $2,006 for the typical suburb in Bathurst Regional. Median rent was $360 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,800 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bathurst | 2.6 km | 25% | 2% |
| South Bathurst | 3.2 km | 21% | 64% |
| White Rock | 4.1 km | 19% | 94% |
| Mitchell | 4.3 km | 0% | 31% |
| Gormans Hill | 4.4 km | 20% | 94% |
| West Bathurst | 4.4 km | 14% | 10% |
| Raglan | 4.9 km | 0% | 74% |
| Orton Park | 5.2 km | 18% | 100% |
| Mount Panorama | 5.6 km | 0% | 85% |
| Abercrombie | 5.7 km | 54% | 74% |