The Estação Ecológica de Águas Emendadas (ESECAE-DF) located in Planaltina is one of the largest Conservations Units of the Distrito Federal/Brazil, and it is responsible for the conservation of the water springs of three biggest watersheds. The landscape fragmentation interferes with local socio-environmental quality and shatters the supply and the quality of drinking water. This study analyzes the dynamics of the soil use, the impact of the land use change and the fragmentation in the 3 kilometers buffer zone around the CU. We calculated the transitional matrices and landscape metrics from images of 1986 until 2016. The metrics calculated were: Number of Patches (NP), Total Core Area (TCA), Patches Density (PD), Edge Density (ED), Number of Disjunct Core Areas (NDCA) and Shannon's Diversity Index (SHDI). The biggest land use conversions were from "Savannas Formations" to "Agricultural Use" and from "Forest Formations" to "Savannas Formations". It was observed that 51% of the buffer zone was modified, directly influencing the water cycle. During the studied period, the NP of the Forest Formation and the Savannah Formations increased, and the TCA of those patches decrease, indicating a strong fragmentation. The year 2006 presented the highest fragmentation values and the year 2016 presents a greater uniformity, since, the agricultural use was already more dominant. It was concluded that the analysis of landscape metrics can be useful tools to help public policies to control and manage land use around the unit to prevent internal damage to the forest caused by anthropogenic actions.

01 - The use of landscape metrics to evaluate the direct influence zone of the Estação Ecológica de Águas Emendadas – Planaltina, Distrito Federal – Brazil.