Lake Illawarra flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Lake Illawarra
(Shellharbour, NSW) - 2.79 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
2.79 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Lake Illawarra'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 Lake Illawarra
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.
Lake Illawarra at a glance
How Lake Illawarra is zoned
Buying in Lake Illawarra? 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 2.79 km², Lake Illawarra is highly constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 26% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 5 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Low Density Residential. The median lot measures about 628 m² across 1,113 parcels.
Who lives in Lake Illawarra
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Lake Illawarra 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 880, and decile 1 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Lake Illawarra's 3,288 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Warilla, the wider ABS statistical area containing Lake Illawarra. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Lake Illawarra itself.
21,813 in 2001 to 20,725 in 2025, down 5%.
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.
Lake Illawarra 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 Lake Illawarra 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 89% of Lake Illawarra. 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 Lake Illawarra lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Lake Illawarra planning - frequently asked
Is Lake Illawarra flood-prone?
Flood mapping covers Lake Illawarra and none of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay.
Is Lake Illawarra bushfire-prone?
Around 26% of Lake Illawarra is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Shellharbour average of 47%.
Is Lake Illawarra under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 89% of Lake Illawarra, and over about 100% 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 1,500 ft, with an average of 3,000 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 2 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 Lake Illawarra?
The dominant planning zone in Lake Illawarra is Low Density Residential, though the suburb also includes Public Recreation and Medium Density Residential.
Does Lake Illawarra have heritage-listed places?
Lake Illawarra has 5 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Lake Illawarra?
Across 1,113 surveyed parcels in Lake Illawarra, the median lot size is about 628 m². There are also 1 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Lake Illawarra have a train station?
There is no train station inside Lake Illawarra itself. The suburb is served by 69 bus stops.
What is the population of Lake Illawarra?
At the 2021 Census Lake Illawarra had 3,288 usual residents, with a median age of 43 and an average household size of 2.1 people. The wider Warilla statistical area, which contains Lake Illawarra, went from 21,813 people in 2001 to 20,725 in 2025, down 5%.
Is Lake Illawarra an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Lake Illawarra scores 880 and sits in decile 1 of 10 nationally and decile 1 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Lake Illawarra?
Median household income in Lake Illawarra was $1,069 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,718 for the typical suburb in Shellharbour. Median rent was $328 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,733 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warilla | 1.3 km | 0% | <1% |
| Windang Wollongong |
1.6 km | 0% | 49% |
| Mount Warrigal | 2.0 km | 0% | 7% |
| Barrack Heights | 2.6 km | Not mapped | 12% |
| Barrack Point | 2.7 km | Not mapped | 6% |
| Shellharbour City Centre | 3.5 km | Not mapped | 5% |
| Shellharbour | 4.0 km | Not mapped | 20% |
| Primbee Wollongong |
4.1 km | 0% | 45% |
| Blackbutt | 4.3 km | Not mapped | 57% |
| Oak Flats | 4.4 km | 0% | 13% |