Upper Crystal Creek flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Upper Crystal Creek
(Tweed, NSW) - 23.82 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
23.82 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Upper Crystal Creek'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 Upper Crystal Creek
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: observed, lowest 6,000 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.
Upper Crystal Creek at a glance
How Upper Crystal Creek is zoned
Buying in Upper Crystal Creek? 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 23.82 km², Upper Crystal Creek is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 7% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 100% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 2 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Rural Landscape. The median lot measures about 67,518 m² across 114 parcels.
Who lives in Upper Crystal Creek
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Upper Crystal Creek 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 963, and decile 4 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Upper Crystal Creek's 212 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Murwillumbah Surrounds, the wider ABS statistical area containing Upper Crystal Creek. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Upper Crystal Creek itself.
8,963 in 2001 to 10,835 in 2025, up 21%.
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.
Upper Crystal Creek 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 Upper Crystal Creek 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 22% of Upper Crystal Creek. 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 Upper Crystal Creek lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Upper Crystal Creek planning - frequently asked
Is Upper Crystal Creek flood-prone?
About 7% of Upper Crystal Creek falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 29%.
Is Upper Crystal Creek bushfire-prone?
Around 100% of Upper Crystal Creek is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Tweed average of 91%.
Is Upper Crystal Creek under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 22% of Upper Crystal Creek, and over about 54% 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 5,000 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 Upper Crystal Creek?
The dominant planning zone in Upper Crystal Creek is Rural Landscape, though the suburb also includes Deferred Matter and National Parks and Nature Reserves.
Does Upper Crystal Creek have heritage-listed places?
Upper Crystal Creek has 2 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Upper Crystal Creek?
Across 114 surveyed parcels in Upper Crystal Creek, the median lot size is about 67,518 m².
What is the population of Upper Crystal Creek?
At the 2021 Census Upper Crystal Creek had 212 usual residents, with a median age of 48 and an average household size of 2.6 people. The wider Murwillumbah Surrounds statistical area, which contains Upper Crystal Creek, went from 8,963 people in 2001 to 10,835 in 2025, up 21%.
Is Upper Crystal Creek an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Upper Crystal Creek scores 963 and sits in decile 4 of 10 nationally and decile 4 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Upper Crystal Creek?
Median household income in Upper Crystal Creek was $1,468 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,394 for the typical suburb in Tweed. Median rent was $400 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,625 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nobbys Creek | 3.6 km | 17% | 100% |
| Numinbah | 4.4 km | 4% | 100% |
| Crystal Creek | 5.1 km | 23% | 100% |
| Chillingham | 5.1 km | 20% | 100% |
| Dungay | 5.6 km | 9% | 100% |
| Tomewin | 7.0 km | <1% | 100% |
| North Arm | 7.1 km | 18% | 100% |
| Zara | 7.2 km | 5% | 100% |
| Hopkins Creek | 7.3 km | 3% | 99% |
| Kynnumboon | 7.9 km | 62% | 100% |