The Use of Vegetative Buffer Strips to Protect Wetlands in Southern Ontario

Approximately 70% of wetlands present in southern Ontario at the time of settlement have been lost to human uses. Significant development pressures continue on the remaining wetlands. The use of vegetated buffer strips of various widths has been recommended in the literature to protect wetland resources from adjacent land uses. These vegetated areas retain some of the pollutants and thereby reduce degradation of water quality and wildlife habitat resulting from adjacent land uses. The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and other regulatory agencies require guidance on the width of vegetated buffer strips to help reduce the negative impacts of developments. To help protect the remaining wetlands, recommendations are made on various widths of buffer strips based on a review of the literature.