Buffer zone

A buffer zone is a neutral zonal area that lies between two or

more bodies of land, usually pertaining to countries.
Depending on the type of buffer zone, it may serve to separate
regions or conjoin them.
Common types of buffer zones are
demilitarized zones, border zones and certain restrictive
easement zones and green belts. Such zones may be comprised
by a sovereign state, forming a buffer state.
Map of the current buffer zone in Cyprus
Buffer zones have various purposes, politically or otherwise.
They can be set up for a multitude of reasons, such as to
prevent violence, protect the environment, shield residential
and commercial zones from industrial accidents or natural
disasters, or even isolate prisons. Buffer zones often result in
large uninhabited regions that are themselves noteworthy in
many increasingly developed or crowded parts of the world.

Contents View of the Cyprus buffer zone between

Paralimni and Famagusta, with the ghost
Conservation
town of Varosha in the background
Ecological functions of conservation
Water quality improvement
Riverbank stabilization
Wildlife food and habitat
Providing aesthetic value
See also
References
External links

Conservation
Czechoslovak sign dating from the
beginning of the 1980s, informing of entry
For use in nature conservation, a buffer zone is often created to
into the frontier zone. The sign reads,
enhance the protection of areas under management for their
"ATTENTION! Border zone. Entry with
biodiversity importance. The buffer zone of a protected area
authorization only."
may be situated around the periphery of the region or may be a
connecting zone within it that links two or more protected
areas, therefore increasing their dynamics and conservation productivity. A buffer zone can also be one of
the protected area categories (e.g. category V or VI of IUCN Protected Area) or a classification scheme
(e.g. NATURA 2000) depending on the conservation objective.[1] The term 'buffer zone' initially gained
prominence in the conservation of natural and cultural heritage through its usage in the establishment of
UNESCO's World Heritage Convention, and the term was intended to be used as follows:
 A buffer zone serves to provide an additional
layer of protection to a World Heritage property.
The concept of a buffer zone was first included in
the Operational Guidelines for the
implementation of the World Heritage Convention
in 1977. In the most current version of the
Operational Guidelines of 2005 the inclusion of a
buffer zone into a nomination of a site to the Modern buffer zone in Brest with a
World Heritage List is strongly recommended but security electric fence, a ploughed trace-
not mandatory. control strip and a pillbox.

—World Heritage Convention[2]

The buffer zone is one of the Best Management Practices (BMPs).

A buffer zone is intended to avert the effect of negative
environmental or human influences, whether or not it embodies
natural or cultural value itself.[3] The importance and function of a
buffer zone and the necessary protective measures derived thereof
is a relatively new concept in conservation science and can differ
greatly for each site.[4]
The Wakhan Corridor formerly
Ecological functions of conservation formed a buffer between the Russian
Empire and British India (on this
modern map, Tajikistan and
Pakistan).
Water quality improvement

The quality of surface water in many countries is getting worse due to the misuse of land.[5] Although the
buffer zone occupies a small area, it greatly improves the quality of water in the agricultural watershed due
to its filtering effect on nutrients in the underground water and surface water.

Because farmland is sprayed with large amounts of pesticides, some of which can seep into surface water,
fish and other aquatic life can be negatively affected, which in turn can lead to environmental damage.
Vegetation buffer has been proved to be an effective filter for sediment, especially for sediment-bound
pesticides.[6] When pesticides are sprayed in excess, a vegetation buffer can be built to reduce the
penetration of pesticides into surface water. The buffer zone also prevents heavy metals or toxins from
spreading to protected areas.[7]

Riverbank stabilization

When riverbanks are low due to plant roots entering the interior of the riverbank vertically, the sediment of
riverbank is affected by the action of said plant roots, and the ability to resist erosion is higher than that
without plant roots. But when the riverbanks are higher, the roots of the plants do not penetrate deeply into
the soil, and the lakeshore soil is not very strong. Herbaceous plants can play a role to some extent, but in
the long term, vegetation buffer zone can effectively solve the problem of water level rise and water
erosion.

The adsorption capacity of a buffer zone can reduce the speed of surface runoff and increase the effective
water content of soil. Through increasing soil organic matter content and improving soil structure, a buffer
zone can have a positive effect on soil water storage performance. In addition, plant roots make the soil
stronger, withstand waves and rainstorm, mitigate the erosion of riverbanks by floods, and effectively
control the erosion of the beach.

Wildlife food and habitat

Riparian buffer zones have been used in many areas to protect the habitats of many animals which are
being devastated by increased human activity. The areas around the buffer zone can form the habitat of
many animals, and plants can become food for small aquatic animals. The buffer zone itself can also
support the life activities of various amphibians and birds. Plants and animals can migrate or spread in
response to these buffer zones, thus increasing the biodiversity in the area.

A 1998 study shows that the species and number of animals and plants in riparian zones are higher than in
other ecosystems.[8] Because of their ability to provide abundant water, soft soil and stable climate, small
animals such as Myotis and Martes prefer to live along riverbanks rather than in hilly areas.[9] The buffer
zone can also provide a good environment for upland habitat, which is in line with the living conditions of
freshwater turtles, making them more dependent on the wetland environment.[10] The protection level of
the buffer zones will affect the habitat range of amphibians and reptiles, and the environmental management
of the wetland habitat around buffer zone is extremely important.

Providing aesthetic value

As an important part of riparian zone, the vegetation buffer zones form a variety of landscape, and the
landscape pattern of combining land and water improves the aesthetic value of river basin landscape. The
riparian buffer is rich in plant resources, and the wetland, grassland and forest ecosystem make the
landscape more beautiful. In addition, some recreational facilities can be built in the buffer zone to provide
better living conditions for residents or tourists and improve people's quality of life.

In the buffer zone, trees up to 6 meters tall greatly enhance the aesthetic value of the landscape.[11] These
tall trees have luxuriant branches and leaves, especially their upright posture, making them of higher
ornamental value. Some colorful landscape tree species can be planted on both sides of rivers with tourism
and sightseeing value to improve the aesthetic value of the place. The establishment of vegetation in the
buffer zone can increase green land, improve forest coverage, beautify the environment and visual effect,
improve people's living environment, enrich humanistic landscape, and enhance aesthetic value. By
emphasizing the importance of the buffer zone, local residents can be encouraged to participate in the
protection and management of the buffer zone, and set up checkpoints around the buffer zone to make it
more secure and effective.

See also
Buffer state
Buffer strip
Demilitarized zone (DMZ)
European Green Belt
March
Seam Zone
United Nations Buffer Zone in Cyprus

References
 1. A-Z of Areas of Biodiversity Importance: Buffer Zones (http://www.biodiversitya-z.org/areas/1
0/)
2. "International Expert meeting on World Heritage and buffer zones" (https://whc.unesco.org/e
n/events/473/). UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Retrieved 24 Nov 2010. "Background
and contents"
3. Martin, Oliver, and Piatti, Giovanna (ed.) World Heritage and
Buffer Zones, International
Expert Meeting on World Heritage and Buffer Zones Davos, Switzerland 11 – 14 March
2008 (Paris: UNESCO, 2009)
4. Ebregt, Arthur and de Greve, Pol, Buffer Zones and their Management: Policy and Best
Practices for Terrestrial Ecosystems in Developing Countries (Wageningen: Netherlands
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2000)
5. Carpenter, S. R .; Caraco, N. F.; Correll, D. L.; Howarth, R. W.; Sharpley, A. N.; Smith, V. H.
(August 1998). "Nonpoint Pollution of Surface Waters with Phosphorus and Nitrogen" (http
s://ecommons.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/60811/1/Carpenter_et_al-1998-Ecological_Applic
ations.pdf) (PDF). Ecological Applications. 8 (3): 559. doi:10.2307/2641247 (https://doi.org/1
0.2307%2F2641247). hdl:1813/60811 (https://hdl.handle.net/1813%2F60811). ISSN 1051-
0761 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1051-0761). JSTOR 2641247 (https://www.jstor.org/stab
le/2641247).
6. Syversen, Nina; Bechmann, Marianne (May 2004). "Vegetative buffer zones as pesticide
filters for simulated surface runoff". Ecological Engineering. 22 (3): 175–184.
doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2004.05.002 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.ecoleng.2004.05.002).
ISSN 0925-8574 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0925-8574).
7. Deroanne-Bauvin, J; Delcarte, E; Impens, R (January 1987). "Monitoring of lead deposition
near highway: A ten years study". Science of the Total Environment. 59: 257–266.
Bibcode:1987ScTEn..59..257D (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1987ScTEn..59..257D).
doi:10.1016/0048-9697(87)90447-5 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2F0048-9697%2887%299044
7-5). ISSN 0048-9697 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0048-9697).
8. Sturtevant, Brian R (October 1998). "A model of wetland vegetation dynamics in simulated
beaver impoundments". Ecological Modelling. 112 (2–3): 195–225. doi:10.1016/s0304-
3800(98)00079-9 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fs0304-3800%2898%2900079-9). ISSN 0304-
3800 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0304-3800).
9. Doyle, A. T. (1990-02-20). "Use of Riparian and Upland Habitats by Small Mammals".
Journal of Mammalogy. 71 (1): 14–23. doi:10.2307/1381312 (https://doi.org/10.2307%2F138
1312). ISSN 1545-1542 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1545-1542). JSTOR 1381312 (https://
www.jstor.org/stable/1381312).
10. Burke, Vincent J.; Gibbons, J. Whitfield (December 1995). "Terrestrial Buffer Zones and
Wetland Conservation: A Case Study of Freshwater Turtles in a Carolina Bay".
Conservation Biology. 9 (6): 1365–1369. doi:10.1046/j.1523-1739.1995.09061365.x (https://
doi.org/10.1046%2Fj.1523-1739.1995.09061365.x). ISSN 0888-8892 (https://www.worldcat.
org/issn/0888-8892).
11. Borin, Maurizio; Passoni, Matteo; Thiene, Mara; Tempesta, Tiziano (January 2010). "Multiple
functions of buffer strips in farming areas". European Journal of Agronomy. 32 (1): 103–111.
doi:10.1016/j.eja.2009.05.003 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.eja.2009.05.003). ISSN 1161-
0301 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1161-0301).

External links
"Buffer Zone" (https://www.theidioms.com/buffer-zone/). Theidioms.com. The Idioms
Dictionary. November 28–29, 2006. Retrieved 28 Sep 2020.
 "World Heritage and Buffer Zones Patrimoine mondial et zones tampons" (https://whc.unesc
o.org/documents/publi_wh_papers_25.pdf) (PDF/Adobe Acrobat 3.76 MB). International
Expert Meeting on World Heritage and Buffer Zones, Davos, Switzerland 11–14 March
2008. World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 24 Nov 2010. "Buffer zones are an important tool for
conservation of properties inscribed on the World Heritage List. All along the history of
implementation of the World Heritage Convention, the protection of the “surroundings” of the
inscribed properties was considered an essential component of the conservation strategy,
for cultural and natural sites alike."

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