Bemm River flood map & planning overlays
Bemm River has a median age of 67, 4th-highest in Victoria.
Free map preview, then PDF reports from $9 - about the price of an iced latte on a public holiday.
A planning-constraint profile of Bemm River
(East Gippsland, VIC) - 271.85 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 24 October 2026.
Constraint readout
271.85 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Bemm River's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Bemm River at a glance
How Bemm River is zoned
Selling in Bemm River? The zoning and planning overlays on this page are the controls a Section 32 vendor statement discloses.
Across its 271.85 km², Bemm River is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 9% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 96% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Public Conservation and Resource Zone (PCRZ). The median lot measures about 1,748 m² across 229 parcels.
Who lives in Bemm River
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Bemm River 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 913, and decile 1 within Victoria. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Bemm River's 72 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Orbost, the wider ABS statistical area containing Bemm River. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Bemm River itself.
7,047 in 2001 to 6,727 in 2025, down 5%.
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.
Bemm River 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 | Vicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | Vicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services |
| Zoning | Mapped | Vicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | Vicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | Vicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Not watched | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 24 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 Bemm River 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 →Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and the indicative soil reactivity range to expect for a Bemm River lot.
Bemm River planning - frequently asked
Is Bemm River flood-prone?
About 9% of Bemm River falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 18%.
Is Bemm River bushfire-prone?
Around 96% of Bemm River is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a East Gippsland average of 94%.
What is the zoning in Bemm River?
The dominant planning zone in Bemm River is Public Conservation and Resource Zone (PCRZ), though the suburb also includes Farming Zone (FZ1) and Township Zone (TZ).
Does Bemm River have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within Bemm River.
What is the typical lot size in Bemm River?
Across 229 surveyed parcels in Bemm River, the median lot size is about 1,748 m². There are also 30 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
What is the population of Bemm River?
At the 2021 Census Bemm River had 72 usual residents, with a median age of 67 and an average household size of 1.8 people. The wider Orbost statistical area, which contains Bemm River, went from 7,047 people in 2001 to 6,727 in 2025, down 5%.
Is Bemm River an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Bemm River scores 913 and sits in decile 2 of 10 nationally and decile 1 within Victoria (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Bemm River?
Median household income in Bemm River was $710 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,209 for the typical suburb in East Gippsland. Median rent was $220 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,190 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manorina | 11.7 km | Not mapped | 100% |
| Bellbird Creek | 13.4 km | Not mapped | 100% |
| Tonghi Creek | 17.3 km | 15% | 100% |
| Marlo | 18.1 km | 14% | 98% |
| Cabbage Tree Creek | 19.9 km | 5% | 100% |
| Cape Conran | 20.3 km | <1% | 100% |
| Club Terrace | 21.2 km | 0% | 100% |
| Tamboon | 23.1 km | 4% | 98% |
| Cann River | 25.1 km | 10% | 100% |
| Brodribb River | 29.9 km | 23% | 98% |