Due to the nature of static rocket engine testing, noise has always been an issue at SSC. A five-mile wide strip of restricted use land known as the Buffer Zone surrounds SSC’s operations area, known as the Fee Area. The boundaries of the Buffer Zone were established to protect human health and the environment, and were based on maximum predicted sound levels. The Buffer Zone is uninhabited and consists of mostly forests and pasturelands. Farming, lumbering, grazing and mineral operations are permitted in the Buffer Zone.