Birchs Bay flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Birchs Bay
(Kingborough, TAS) - 8.24 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 6 September 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
8.24 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Birchs Bay's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Birchs Bay at a glance
How Birchs Bay is zoned
Buying in Birchs Bay? The zone and code overlays on this page are the Tasmanian Planning Scheme controls a section 337 certificate reports for a title.
Across its 8.24 km², Birchs Bay is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 4% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 100% is flagged bushfire-prone. There is 1 heritage-listed site on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Environmental Living. The median lot measures about 53,661 m² across 85 parcels.
Who lives in Birchs Bay
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Birchs Bay 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 1041, and decile 10 within Tasmania. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Birchs Bay's 116 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Bruny Island - Kettering, the wider ABS statistical area containing Birchs Bay. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Birchs Bay itself.
2,601 in 2001 to 3,633 in 2025, up 40%.
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.
Birchs Bay 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 Tasmanian Planning Scheme and the LIST (Land Tasmania) |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | the Tasmanian Planning Scheme and the LIST (Land Tasmania) |
| Zoning | Mapped | the Tasmanian Planning Scheme and the LIST (Land Tasmania) |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | the Tasmanian Planning Scheme and the LIST (Land Tasmania) |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | the Tasmanian Planning Scheme and the LIST (Land Tasmania), Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Watched, not yet sampled here | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 6 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 Birchs Bay 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 here: a Flood Model Report is available for about 60 Birchs Bay addresses (+$9 with the planning report).
See what's in the $9 report →Birchs Bay planning - frequently asked
Is Birchs Bay flood-prone?
About 4% of Birchs Bay falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 6%. Modelled flood depth, velocity and flood level are held for about 60 Birchs Bay addresses, from published flood studies; the free check on the Flood Model Report page says whether a model reaches a given address.
Is Birchs Bay bushfire-prone?
Around 100% of Birchs Bay is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Kingborough average of 94%.
What is the zoning in Birchs Bay?
The dominant planning zone in Birchs Bay is Environmental Living, though the suburb also includes Rural Resource and Environmental Management.
Does Birchs Bay have heritage-listed places?
Birchs Bay has 1 heritage-listed place on record.
What is the typical lot size in Birchs Bay?
Across 85 surveyed parcels in Birchs Bay, the median lot size is about 53,661 m².
What is the population of Birchs Bay?
At the 2021 Census Birchs Bay had 116 usual residents, with a median age of 56 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Bruny Island - Kettering statistical area, which contains Birchs Bay, went from 2,601 people in 2001 to 3,633 in 2025, up 40%.
Is Birchs Bay an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Birchs Bay scores 1041 and sits in decile 8 of 10 nationally and decile 10 within Tasmania (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Birchs Bay?
Median household income in Birchs Bay was $1,187 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,550 for the typical suburb in Kingborough. Median rent was $200 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,733 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flowerpot | 2.2 km | 3% | 100% |
| Woodbridge | 3.1 km | 5% | 99% |
| Middleton | 4.7 km | 5% | 100% |
| Apollo Bay | 5.6 km | 6% | 100% |
| Garden Island Creek Huon Valley |
5.9 km | 6% | 100% |
| Gardners Bay Huon Valley |
6.0 km | 5% | 100% |
| Kettering | 6.6 km | 5% | 99% |
| Deep Bay Huon Valley |
7.7 km | 4% | 99% |
| Oyster Cove | 7.9 km | 5% | 99% |
| Nicholls Rivulet Huon Valley |
8.1 km | 8% | 100% |