How do I read my survey plan?
Your survey plan has been prepared by TerraModus Surveying in accordance with the current surveying legislation, standards and guidelines including the Surveying and Mapping Infrastructure Act 2003 and Queensland’s Cadastral Survey Requirements. The plan displays the purpose of the survey and the intended actions of the lot/s of land, such as a land subdivision. The plan is a legal document representing the field survey performed and administrative details associated with the parcel of land.
The terminology and abbreviations used can make survey plans difficult to interpret. Keep in mind each jurisdiction (state, territory, country) will have different survey plan requirements under their legislation and therefore the terminology will differ too.
What does the survey plan (SP) show?
The survey plan shows the boundaries of the lot/s and other titling interests (such as easements) in the form of bearings and distances for the subject land. Distances are represented in metres. An area will also be displayed for each subject lot or interest. The bold lines represent the subject lot/s being surveyed and the other lines show the extent of the survey and adjoining information. Adjoining information to your lot/s, including lot on plan descriptions and street names, as well as the locality and local government is shown on the survey plan to clearly identify where the parcel lies in Queensland.
I have a copy of an old survey plan but the distances seem incorrect?
It is unlikely the distances are incorrect, but more likely they are represented as an imperial measurement so will need to be converted to a metric measurement. In Queensland most pre-metric survey plans represent distances in links.
Where are the survey marks shown on the plan?
As per survey legislation and standards, TerraModus Surveying place recognisable survey marks, usually white survey pegs, at each subject property corner unless it was physically impractical to do so. These survey marks are displayed on the survey plan at each corner or by a statement noted on the plan. An example of such a statement is “Peg placed at all new corners”. A finder stake is usually placed next to the white pegs in the ground to help you find the corner pegs.
Original survey marks (i.e. recorded on a previous survey plan) are noted on the plan with the abbreviation “O”. For example OP is an original peg and OIP is an original iron pin. Permanent Marks and Reference Marks are placed by surveyors to facilitate future surveys and this information is used by surveyors and available by obtaining survey searches from the Queensland Government. Permanent Marks and Reference Marks are usually tabulated on the survey plan. These reference marks are placed near the corner (not at the corner). Please do not disturb these marks as if disturbed it will affect the time it will take to perform future surveys which can be costly to you, your neighbours and future landowners in the area. Common reference marks used are Iron Pins, Nails, Drill Holes, and in rural areas blazed trees. Existing fencing is known as occupation and is usually shown as a way of reference to the corner. An example is "Cen RFP 0.1N" means the centre of a round fence post is 0.1 North of the corner. TerraModus Surveying is happy to provide our clients an information sheet with your survey plan to assist you to read and interpret the survey we have performed for you.
Did you know that under the Survey and Mapping Infrastructure Act 2003 it is an offence to interfere with a survey mark without approval? Please do not interfere with any survey marks.
You can read further information about survey marks on the Queensland Government website.