Zonáció

Zonáció refers to the process or state of being divided into zones. In various fields, this concept denotes the arrangement of areas or regions into distinct sections based on specific criteria.

In geography and urban planning, zonación is commonly employed to regulate land use. Zoning ordinances divide a municipality into districts, such as residential, commercial, industrial, or agricultural zones. Each zone has regulations regarding what types of activities are permitted, building heights, lot sizes, and other development standards. This aims to promote orderly development, prevent conflicts between different land uses, and protect public health, safety, and welfare.

Ecologically, zonación describes the distribution of species or habitats across a landscape or within a specific environment. For example, altitudinal zonación refers to the change in vegetation and animal communities with increasing elevation on a mountain. Similarly, marine zonación describes the distinct bands of life found at different depths in the ocean.

In other contexts, zonación can refer to the separation of elements or components within a system. This might include the zonación of minerals in a rock formation or the zonación of a biological cell into different compartments with specialized functions. The underlying principle remains the division of a larger entity into smaller, defined areas with distinct characteristics or purposes.