Recent posts in this blog have attempted to show that sustainable, environmentally-sound policies can be sensible, practical and perhaps most importantly of all, do not require an economic or financial compromise. The following example is a small scale initiative but it has a big impact on local communities.
The Urban Pollinators Project run by the University of Bristol, aims to research pollinating insects in urban spaces and looks to help increase the abundance and diversity of urban pollinators by promoting urban flower meadows. These meadows can be grown in parks by replacing traditional plant choices with pollinator-friendly wild flowers. The meadows can also be created in other grassy areas such as along the road side, increasing the aesthetic appeal of these areas.
(photo from: Urban Pollinators Project)
The Decline of England's Bees, a policy review and recommendations report published by the University of Reading explains why pollinating insects are so important:
"Pollination by insects is thought to be the main reproductive mechanism in 78% of temperate flowering plants and is essential to maintaining plant genetic diversity"
"Insect-pollinated plants and their fruits or seeds are also important to wider biodiversity, providing food, shelter and other resources to mammals, birds and other insects."
(photo from Urban Pollinators Project)
The protection of pollinating insects is not just about ecological integrity, there is also a significant economic motivation. Pollinating insects carry out very important work, for free. The Decline of England's Bees report quantifies this contribution to the UK economy:
"£510m of total crop sales value is thought to directly arise from pollination services as of 2009"
"To replace pollination services provided by bees with hand pollination could cost farmers around £1.8bn/year in labour and pollen alone"
(photo from Urban Pollinators Project)
The success of the Urban Pollinators Project was featured in the Guardian Newspaper this week and the article discusses the multiple benefits of urban meadows, apart from supporting a declining bee population and the related consequences of loss to biodiversity, the meadows are aesthetically pleasing. Furthermore they are a cheaper and more sustainable alternative to maintaining mowed grass, especially if perennial meadows are sown. These urban meadows are becoming a sensible choice for city councils faced with restricted budgets. The article also suggests that these meadows can even reduce antisocial behaviour:
"At St Andrews Park in Bristol, mini-meadows in petal shapes, spirals and wavy lines have been sown to gently discourage antisocial behaviour by stopping large groups of people gathering on the grass."
The success of urban meadows hints that win win policies are possible and that the environment and the economy are not always in direct opposition.
(photo from Urban Pollinators Project)
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