Marleston flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Marleston
(City of West Torrens, SA) - 0.98 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
0.98 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Marleston's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Amber hatching is the published aircraft noise (ANEF) contour. 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 Marleston
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.
Inside an aircraft noise contour
38% of the suburb's land sits inside a published ANEF or airport-environs contour. Contours vary street by street, so whether a particular lot is inside one needs a property-level check.
Highest contour present
Under AS 2021, land between ANEF 25 and 30 is generally unacceptable for new houses; 20 to 25 is conditionally acceptable with noise attenuation. The contour is a forecast, not a measurement at any one house.
Contours held
- SA Planning and Design Code aircraft noise
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 3 Oct 2026
typical observed square 1 a day
Night movements: observed, lowest 500 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.
Marleston at a glance
How Marleston is zoned
Selling in Marleston? The zone and overlays on this page are the Planning and Design Code controls a Form 1 vendor's statement has to disclose.
Across its 0.98 km², Marleston is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 47% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay. The dominant land-use zone is Housing Diversity Neighbourhood. The median lot measures about 297 m² across 1,404 parcels.
Who lives in Marleston
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Marleston 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 977, and decile 5 within South Australia. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Marleston's 1,950 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Plympton, the wider ABS statistical area containing Marleston. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Marleston itself.
21,279 in 2001 to 28,617 in 2025, up 34%.
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.
Marleston 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 South Australian Planning and Design Code and Location SA spatial data |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | the South Australian Planning and Design Code and Location SA spatial data |
| Zoning | Mapped | the South Australian Planning and Design Code and Location SA spatial data |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | the South Australian Planning and Design Code and Location SA spatial data |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Inside a held contour | the South Australian Planning and Design Code and Location SA spatial data, 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 Marleston 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 90% of Marleston. 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 Marleston lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Marleston planning - frequently asked
Is Marleston flood-prone?
About 47% of Marleston falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 32%.
Is Marleston bushfire-prone?
Bushfire mapping covers Marleston and little to none of it is mapped as bushfire-prone.
Is Marleston affected by aircraft noise?
About 38% of Marleston sits inside a published aircraft noise contour, and the highest contour present is ANEF 25 - under AS 2021, land above ANEF 25 is generally considered unacceptable for new houses, and 20-25 conditionally acceptable with noise attenuation. ANEF contours are forecasts published per airport and used to control noise-sensitive development; they are not a measurement at any one house, and a property can sit under a flight path and outside every contour.
Is Marleston under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 90% of Marleston, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 3 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 500 ft, with an average of 1,000 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 6 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. 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 Marleston?
The dominant planning zone in Marleston is Housing Diversity Neighbourhood, though the suburb also includes Strategic Employment and Employment.
Does Marleston have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within Marleston.
What is the typical lot size in Marleston?
Across 1,404 surveyed parcels in Marleston, the median lot size is about 297 m².
Does Marleston have a train station?
There is no train station inside Marleston itself. The suburb is served by 13 bus stops.
What is the population of Marleston?
At the 2021 Census Marleston had 1,950 usual residents, with a median age of 37 and an average household size of 2.1 people. The wider Plympton statistical area, which contains Marleston, went from 21,279 people in 2001 to 28,617 in 2025, up 34%.
Is Marleston an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Marleston scores 977 and sits in decile 5 of 10 nationally and decile 5 within South Australia (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Marleston?
Median household income in Marleston was $1,418 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,539 for the typical suburb in City of West Torrens. Median rent was $290 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,528 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond | 0.7 km | 61% | 0% |
| Kurralta Park | 1.0 km | 52% | 0% |
| Ashford | 1.2 km | 81% | 0% |
| West Richmond | 1.2 km | 60% | 0% |
| Netley | 1.3 km | 35% | 0% |
| Keswick | 1.4 km | 72% | 0% |
| Hilton | 1.4 km | 52% | 0% |
| Cowandilla | 1.4 km | 85% | 0% |
| North Plympton | 1.4 km | 12% | 0% |
| Mile End South | 1.4 km | 80% | 0% |