Paterson flood map & planning overlays
Paterson's 6 ha blocks carry 82.7% bushfire mapping, for a median age of 41.
Things you won't regret: spending $9 to know the lot before you commit.
Free map preview, then PDF reports from $9 - about the price of an iced latte on a public holiday.
A planning-constraint profile of Paterson
(Fraser Coast Regional, QLD) - 28.55 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 7 November 2026.
Constraint readout
28.55 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Paterson'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 Paterson
The ANEF contour is a published planning forecast and observed overflight is what a sampled tracking feed recorded - neither describes any individual property.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 7 Nov 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.
How this is measured
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.
Paterson at a glance
Schools in and near Paterson
Public school-location data shows availability across the suburb; it does not rate schools or assign any individual address to a catchment.
Inside the suburb boundary
0 schools providing primary years and 0 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.
Nearest school availability
Primary: 1.71 km from the suburb boundary
Secondary: 29.02 km from the suburb boundary
Source: Queensland Government school geographic information. Catchment boundaries can divide a suburb and change over time.
Which school zone is a Paterson address in? Check an address with our free school zone checker.
How Paterson is zoned
Selling in Paterson? 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 28.55 km², Paterson is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 40% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 83% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Rural. The median lot measures about 64,777 m² across 157 parcels.
Who lives in Paterson
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Paterson 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 831, and decile 1 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Paterson's 157 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Maryborough Surrounds - South, the wider ABS statistical area containing Paterson. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Paterson itself.
5,760 in 2001 to 11,170 in 2025, up 94%.
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.
Paterson 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 | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Zoning | Mapped | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
| School availability | Available | Queensland Government |
Profile last materially updated 7 November 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 Paterson 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.
See what's in the $9 report →Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 3% of Paterson. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Published flood models are held over parts of Paterson. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.
Moving here? The Liveability section adds walking times from the address to schools, parks, shops and transport, and the school zones it sits in (+$9 with the planning report).
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and the indicative soil reactivity range to expect for a Paterson lot.
Paterson planning - frequently asked
Is Paterson flood-prone?
About 40% of Paterson falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 46%. Published flood models are held over parts of Paterson; the free check on the Flood Model Report page says whether one reaches a given address.
Is Paterson bushfire-prone?
Around 83% of Paterson is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Fraser Coast Regional average of 68%.
Is Paterson under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 3% of Paterson, and over about 40% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 7 Nov 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 1,500 ft, with an average of 6,000 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 Paterson?
The dominant planning zone in Paterson is Rural, though the suburb also includes Community facilities.
Does Paterson have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within Paterson.
What is the typical lot size in Paterson?
Across 157 surveyed parcels in Paterson, the median lot size is about 64,777 m². There are also 3 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
What is the population of Paterson?
At the 2021 Census Paterson had 157 usual residents, with a median age of 41 and an average household size of 2.9 people. The wider Maryborough Surrounds - South statistical area, which contains Paterson, went from 5,760 people in 2001 to 11,170 in 2025, up 94%.
Is Paterson an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Paterson scores 831 and sits in decile 1 of 10 nationally and decile 1 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Paterson?
Median household income in Paterson was $1,083 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,124 for the typical suburb in Fraser Coast Regional. Median rent was $283 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,350 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miva | 4.8 km | 100% | 66% |
| Gundiah | 5.1 km | 58% | 79% |
| Theebine | 5.5 km | 29% | 34% |
| Gootchie | 5.6 km | 46% | 74% |
| Theebine Gympie Regional |
5.8 km | 53% | 45% |
| Kanigan | 7.4 km | 26% | 39% |
| Munna Creek | 7.9 km | 76% | 78% |
| Munna Creek Gympie Regional |
7.9 km | 88% | 92% |
| Miva Gympie Regional |
9.7 km | 58% | 84% |
| Kanigan Gympie Regional |
9.7 km | 14% | 24% |