Rock Valley flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Rock Valley
(Lismore, NSW) - 37.88 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is moderately constrained.
Profile updated 3 October 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
37.88 km² - this suburb is moderately constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Rock Valley'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 Rock Valley
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.
Rock Valley at a glance
How Rock Valley is zoned
Buying in Rock Valley? 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 37.88 km², Rock Valley is moderately constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 33% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 2 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Primary Production. The median lot measures about 79,966 m² across 167 parcels.
Who lives in Rock Valley
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Rock Valley 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 928, and decile 2 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Rock Valley's 266 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Lismore Surrounds, the wider ABS statistical area containing Rock Valley. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Rock Valley itself.
14,249 in 2001 to 16,160 in 2025, up 13%.
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.
Rock Valley 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 Rock Valley 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 Rock Valley lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Rock Valley planning - frequently asked
Is Rock Valley flood-prone?
Flood mapping covers Rock Valley and less than 1% of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay (the council-wide suburb average is 46%).
Is Rock Valley bushfire-prone?
Around 33% of Rock Valley is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Lismore average of 33%.
Is Rock Valley under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed over about 17% of Rock Valley in the period sampled, but only above 3,000 ft - the lowest measured was 5,500 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 Rock Valley?
The dominant planning zone in Rock Valley is Primary Production, though the suburb also includes Natural Waterways and Forestry.
Does Rock Valley have heritage-listed places?
Rock Valley has 2 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Rock Valley?
Across 167 surveyed parcels in Rock Valley, the median lot size is about 79,966 m².
What is the population of Rock Valley?
At the 2021 Census Rock Valley had 266 usual residents, with a median age of 53 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Lismore Surrounds statistical area, which contains Rock Valley, went from 14,249 people in 2001 to 16,160 in 2025, up 13%.
Is Rock Valley an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Rock Valley scores 928 and sits in decile 3 of 10 nationally and decile 2 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Rock Valley?
Median household income in Rock Valley was $1,346 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,458 for the typical suburb in Lismore. Median rent was $320 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,517 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jiggi | 4.0 km | Not mapped | 41% |
| Bungabbee | 4.9 km | Not mapped | 28% |
| Leycester | 5.5 km | 6% | 31% |
| Bentley | 6.2 km | Not mapped | 89% |
| Koonorigan | 7.6 km | Not mapped | 30% |
| Fernside | 7.8 km | 0% | 31% |
| Blakebrook | 8.8 km | 22% | 21% |
| Georgica | 9.0 km | Not mapped | 57% |
| Larnook | 9.1 km | Not mapped | 63% |
| Goolmangar | 9.5 km | Not mapped | 16% |