THE PURPOSE OF THIS RESEARCH WERE TO VERIFY, BASED ON AN AWARENESS SURVEY OF LOCAL RESIDENTS, A HYPOTHESIS THAT, IF A CANAL EXISTS IN FRONT, PEOPLE FEEL THAT VARIOUS INFLUENCES OF THE OPPOSITE BANK HAVE BEEN MITIGATED AND ALSO TO EXAMINE WHAT FACTORS INHERENT IN THAT CANAL CONTRIBUTE TOWARD SUCH A BUFFERING EFFECT, IF IT ANY. THE FINDINGS WERE AS FOLLOWS : (1）THE BUFFER EFFECT WAS RECOGNIZED IN SURVEYED AREAS; (2) DEGREES OF THE BUFFER EFFECT VARIES ACCORDING TO THE WIDTH OF CANAL; AND (3) PRIMARY FACTORS OF THE BUFFER EFFECT ARE WAVES AND TIDES, BIRDS AND FISHES, SAILING BOATS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL ONE RELATED TO THE UNCHANGING CONDITIONS OF THE SPACE ABOVE THE CANAL ZONES.