Plans to add the safeguards come under Greater Manchester’s Places for Everyone, a plan that zones land for development across nine of the region’s 10 boroughs.
Only Stockport is not included in the scheme.
South Pennine Moors is a designated conservation area recognised as an important habitat for birds.
Merlins, golden plovers, and short-eared owls are among the species which the new safeguards aim to protect.
Any proposed development within 1.5 miles (2.5km) of the moors would first require habitat surveys to be carried out.
Unless certain criteria are met, there would also be a ban on development within 440 yards (400m) of the moors.
A separate consultation has also been launched for Holcroft Moss, a protected area of lowland bog known as the only area in Cheshire that has never been cut for peat.
The impact of traffic pollution on the nearby area, which is close to the M62, could have to be considered before any development plans are approved.
The nine Places for Everyone local authorities and Warrington Borough Council have also proposed a package of restoration measures to improve the resilience of the peat habitat to air pollution.
The consultations are open until 12 December.