| Summary: | The buffer zone has become an important component in all
reserve management plans or conservation initiatives,
particularly in tropical regions. Buffer zones have been
proposed as both an additional protection to existing reserves
and a means to provide opportunities for people living
adjacent to the reserves to maintain their livelihood.
One fundamental problem of the buffer zone approach is
that there are no methods available to determine appropriate
buffer zone width for any given reserve. Many suggestions for
a standard buffer zone width have been offered, but these are
largely based on intuition . There is a serious lack of
ecological studies to support those suggestions. In areas
where land is abundant and population density is low, we may
make "prudent guesses" in determining buffer zone width.
However, in areas where human population pressure has led to
increasing levels of resource consumption and an increase in
land-use conflicts , ecologically-based studies should be used
in determining buffer zone width.
Considering the accelerated rate of habitat destruction
and loss coupled with chronic reserve management problems,
long-term and detailed ecological studies to determine buffer
zone width for each individual reserve are infeasible and
unrealistic . What is needed is a method that can be used to
gather biophysical data for determining necessary buffer zone
width. Such a method should be simple, inexpensive, and easily-taught
to and used by park planners and communities around the
reserves; yet, it should also be comprehensive enough to
provide reliable information.
The method proposed in this thesis is based on analysis
of species richness, species diversity, stem density and
species compositions. The major concept is that areas around
the reserve showing similar species richness, species
diversity, stem density and species composition to the core
habitats of the reserve, should be legalized as buffer zone.
The proposed method must be used in conjunction with
considerations about the socio-economic and cultural
conditions of the people living around the reserve.
The potential of the proposed method is demonstrated by
an application focusing on plants in the area around the
Ruteng Strict Nature Reserve on Flores Island, Indonesia.
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