Grassland reconstruction in a factory yard increases biodiversity and reduces costs of installation and maintenance

IF 2 3区环境科学与生态学 Q3 ECOLOGY

Applied Vegetation Science Pub Date : 2023-11-16 DOI:10.1111/avsc.12752

Anna Cseperke Csonka, Katalin Török, Anikó Csecserits, Melinda Halassy

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Aims

The restoration of unused urban-industrial areas has great conservation potential as it can sometimes create a win-win situation in terms of nature conservation and economic benefits. Financial data of restoration projects are rarely published. To close this gap, we report the cost–benefit analysis of different landscaping methods used in the greening of the outskirts of a factory industrial area.

Location

The study area is located in a factory area in Nyíregyháza, Nyírség, Hungary.

Methods

In this study, we compare the costs of the implementation and maintenance of three different types of grasslands (intensively and extensively managed park lawns and semi-natural grassland, called eco area) and the ecological benefits in terms of vegetation and potential for pollinators.

Results

The implementation and maintenance costs of the extensively managed park lawn were more than ten-fold higher than that of the eco area, despite the higher price of native plant material. The construction of the extensive park lawn is the cheapest, but the eco area pays off in ca. 1.5 years compared to it, taking into account the lower maintenance costs. Seven years after implementation, the eco area is the most species-rich, hosting the highest number of natural constituent species, but with similar vegetation cover as in the intensively managed park lawn without costly maintenance. The cover and species richness of legumes and forbs are also higher in the eco area, ensuring a food source for pollinators.

Conclusions

Our results support that introducing species-rich and diverse grasslands with native, habitat specialist species as an alternative to traditional landscaping in urban-industrial areas can be economically and ecologically rewarding. The higher costs of planning, plant material, and implementation pay off in a short time due to low maintenance costs and can lead to a win-win situation for nature as well as for the local economy.

Abstract Image

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工厂场地的草地重建增加了生物多样性，降低了安装和维护成本

未使用的城市工业区的修复具有巨大的保护潜力，有时可以创造自然保护和经济效益的双赢局面。修复工程的财务数据很少公布。为了缩小这一差距，我们报告了在工厂工业区郊区绿化中使用的不同绿化方法的成本效益分析。研究区域位于匈牙利Nyíregyháza, Nyírség的一个工厂区域。方法在本研究中，我们比较了三种不同类型草地(集约和广泛管理的公园草坪和半自然草地，称为生态区)的实施和维护成本以及植被和传粉者潜力方面的生态效益。结果在天然植物材料价格较高的情况下，粗放型公园草坪的实施和维护成本比生态区高10倍以上。建造大面积的公园草坪是最便宜的，但考虑到较低的维护成本，与之相比，生态区的回报时间约为1.5年。实施七年后，生态区是物种最丰富的，拥有最多的自然组成物种，但植被覆盖与集中管理的公园草坪相似，无需昂贵的维护。在生态区，豆科植物和草本植物的覆盖面积和物种丰富度也较高，为传粉昆虫提供了食物来源。结论在城市工业区引入物种丰富多样的原生生境特色物种，替代传统的园林绿化，具有良好的经济效益和生态效益。由于维护成本较低，规划、植物材料和实施的较高成本在短时间内就能得到回报，从而实现自然和当地经济的双赢。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Applied Vegetation Science 环境科学-林学

CiteScore

6.00

自引率

10.70%

发文量

审稿时长

3 months

期刊介绍： Applied Vegetation Science focuses on community-level topics relevant to human interaction with vegetation, including global change, nature conservation, nature management, restoration of plant communities and of natural habitats, and the planning of semi-natural and urban landscapes. Vegetation survey, modelling and remote-sensing applications are welcome. Papers on vegetation science which do not fit to this scope (do not have an applied aspect and are not vegetation survey) should be directed to our associate journal, the Journal of Vegetation Science. Both journals publish papers on the ecology of a single species only if it plays a key role in structuring plant communities.