Meridan Plains flood map & planning overlays

A planning-constraint profile of Meridan Plains (Sunshine Coast Regional, QLD) - 17.75 km², mapped from live council and state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 19 September 2026.

Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Meridan Plains's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.

Nearby suburbs, nearest first

How common is mapped flood risk across Meridan Plains properties?

Overlay percentages say how much land is constrained; these figures say how many properties are actually touched in a suburb-wide analysis of 1,909 Meridan Plains properties. No individual property result is identified on this page.

Meridan Plains at a glance

Parcels 1,606 Median lot 464 m² Mapped easements 688 Bus stops 3 Schools in suburb 4 Landslide overlay <1%

Schools in and near Meridan Plains

Public school-location data shows availability across the suburb. These figures do not rate schools and do not assign a particular address to a catchment.

Inside the suburb boundary

4

2 schools providing primary years and 3 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.

Nearest school availability

Primary: inside the suburb

Secondary: inside the suburb

Source: Queensland Government school geographic information. Catchment boundaries can divide a suburb and change over time; use the official catchment finder for a specific address.

How Meridan Plains is zoned

Rural 54%
Environmental Management and Conservation 21%
Community Facilities 12%
Sport and Recreation 8%
Low Density Residential 3%
Open Space 1%

Selling in Meridan Plains? The lot-level zone is the zoning Part 3 of Queensland's Form 2 seller disclosure statement asks for - see our Form 2 planning data guide.

Across its 17.75 km², Meridan Plains is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 71% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 28% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Rural. The terrain is largely flat, and the median lot measures about 464 m² across 1,606 parcels.

Recent development applications in Meridan Plains

Applications are counted across the whole gazetted suburb from the public Sunshine Coast Council register. No application address or individual property is published here.

Submitted in the past 12 months

<5

The exact total and latest date are suppressed for privacy.

Counts depend on applications that the council publishes and that can be assigned to a suburb. Categories can overlap when one application covers several types. Totals below five and their latest dates are suppressed. Register last synchronised 20 September 2026. Check the official council register.

Who lives in Meridan Plains

Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Meridan Plains suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.

Population
4,589
usual residents, 2021
Median age
36
years
Median household income
$1,529
per week, Sunshine Coast Regional suburb typical $1,677
Median rent
$460
per week, Sunshine Coast Regional suburb typical $409
Median mortgage
$1,850
per month
Household size
2.6
people, average

Socio-economic standing

ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.

Advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD) Decile 5
most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 983, and decile 7 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 5
most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Meridan Plains's 4,589 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 6.1%
5-14 14.7%
15-19 7.4%
20-24 5.8%
25-34 14.0%
35-44 13.1%
45-54 12.7%
55-64 7.1%
65-74 7.1%
75-84 9.0%
85+ 2.9%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

Estimated resident population of Meridan Plains - Little Mountain (North), the wider ABS statistical area containing Meridan Plains. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Meridan Plains itself.

3,486 in 2001 to 15,068 in 2025, up 332%.

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.

Meridan Plains data sources and coverage

“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.

DatasetCoveragePublisher
Flood mappingMappedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Bushfire-prone mappingMappedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
ZoningMappedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Heritage and environmentMapped where publishedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Aircraft noise contours (ANEF)Not heldthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data, Defence
DemographicsAvailableAustralian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA)
School availabilityAvailableQueensland Government
Development applicationsAvailable as suburb totalsSunshine Coast Council

Profile last materially updated 19 September 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 Meridan Plains 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.

Published flood models are held over parts of Meridan Plains. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.

The Terrain Report shows the fall of the block - contours, cross sections and a 3D model of the lot (+$9 with the planning report).

Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Meridan Plains lot.

See what's in the $9 report →

Meridan Plains planning - frequently asked

Is Meridan Plains flood-prone?

About 71% of Meridan Plains falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 30%. Across the suburb, 16% of the 1,909 properties we analysed carry some level of mapped flood risk, including 228 rated high risk or historically affected.

Is Meridan Plains bushfire-prone?

Around 28% of Meridan Plains is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Sunshine Coast Regional average of 38%.

What is the zoning in Meridan Plains?

The dominant planning zone in Meridan Plains is Rural, though the suburb also includes Environmental Management and Conservation and Community Facilities.

Does Meridan Plains have heritage-listed places?

No heritage-listed places are on record within Meridan Plains.

Is Meridan Plains hilly or flat?

Meridan Plains is largely flat: the median ground slope is about 2%. Ground level runs from roughly 3 m to 10 m AHD across the suburb.

What is the typical lot size in Meridan Plains?

Across 1,606 surveyed parcels in Meridan Plains, the median lot size is about 464 m². There are also 688 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

Does Meridan Plains have a train station?

There is no train station inside Meridan Plains itself. The suburb is served by 3 bus stops.

What is the population of Meridan Plains?

At the 2021 Census Meridan Plains had 4,589 usual residents, with a median age of 36 and an average household size of 2.6 people. The wider Meridan Plains - Little Mountain (North) statistical area, which contains Meridan Plains, went from 3,486 people in 2001 to 15,068 in 2025, up 332%.

Is Meridan Plains an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Meridan Plains scores 983 and sits in decile 5 of 10 nationally and decile 7 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Meridan Plains?

Median household income in Meridan Plains was $1,529 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,677 for the typical suburb in Sunshine Coast Regional. Median rent was $460 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,850 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburbDistanceFlood mappedBushfire-prone
Little Mountain 2.7 km 10% 23%
Birtinya 3.4 km 86% 40%
Palmview 3.6 km 37% 39%
Aroona 3.7 km 3% 19%
Currimundi 3.8 km 38% 9%
Sippy Downs 4.2 km 44% 56%
Wurtulla 4.2 km 49% 19%
Corbould Park 4.7 km 30% 58%
Battery Hill 4.7 km 12% 3%
Caloundra West 4.9 km 46% 48%

See all Sunshine Coast Regional suburb profiles →