Waterview Heights flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Waterview Heights
(Clarence Valley, NSW) - 58.32 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
58.32 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Waterview Heights'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 Waterview Heights
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 9,000 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.
Waterview Heights at a glance
How Waterview Heights is zoned
Buying in Waterview Heights? 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 58.32 km², Waterview Heights is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 7% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 98% is flagged bushfire-prone. There is 1 heritage-listed site on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Rural Landscape. The median lot measures about 8,919 m² across 623 parcels.
Who lives in Waterview Heights
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Waterview Heights 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 939, and decile 3 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Waterview Heights's 1,364 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Grafton Surrounds, the wider ABS statistical area containing Waterview Heights. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Waterview Heights itself.
14,917 in 2001 to 18,099 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.
Waterview Heights 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 Waterview Heights 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 Waterview Heights lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Waterview Heights planning - frequently asked
Is Waterview Heights flood-prone?
About 7% of Waterview Heights falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 24%.
Is Waterview Heights bushfire-prone?
Around 98% of Waterview Heights is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Clarence Valley average of 94%.
Is Waterview Heights under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed over about 3% of Waterview Heights in the period sampled, but only above 3,000 ft - the lowest measured was 8,000 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 Waterview Heights?
The dominant planning zone in Waterview Heights is Rural Landscape, though the suburb also includes Large Lot Residential and Primary Production.
Does Waterview Heights have heritage-listed places?
Waterview Heights has 1 heritage-listed place on record.
What is the typical lot size in Waterview Heights?
Across 623 surveyed parcels in Waterview Heights, the median lot size is about 8,919 m². There are also 13 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Waterview Heights have a train station?
There is no train station inside Waterview Heights itself. The suburb is served by 43 bus stops.
What is the population of Waterview Heights?
At the 2021 Census Waterview Heights had 1,364 usual residents, with a median age of 49 and an average household size of 2.7 people. The wider Grafton Surrounds statistical area, which contains Waterview Heights, went from 14,917 people in 2001 to 18,099 in 2025, up 21%.
Is Waterview Heights an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Waterview Heights scores 939 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 Waterview Heights?
Median household income in Waterview Heights was $1,485 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,187 for the typical suburb in Clarence Valley. Median rent was $300 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,517 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterview | 5.4 km | 92% | 91% |
| Eatonsville | 6.2 km | 0% | 100% |
| Southampton | 6.6 km | 27% | 100% |
| Rushforth | 6.6 km | 0% | 100% |
| Carrs Island | 6.7 km | 100% | 77% |
| Carrs Peninsula | 7.0 km | 100% | 75% |
| Mylneford | 7.8 km | 0% | 100% |
| Carrs Creek | 8.3 km | 96% | 100% |
| Grafton | 8.9 km | 91% | 10% |
| Junction Hill | 9.9 km | 57% | 67% |