Authors: Csonka, Anna Cseperke; Török, Katalin;Halassy, Melinda;

Restoration of unused urban-industrial areas has great potential for nature conservation purposes. In this study we compare costs related to implementation and maintenance of three different grassland types (intensive park lawn, extensive grassland and reconstructed native eco park) and we evaluate the established vegetation as an indicator of local biodiversity. The implementation and maintenance costs were more than ten folds higher for the intensive park than the eco park despite the higher price of native plant material. The construction of the eco park pays off in 12.5 years compared to the extensive grassland taking into account the lower maintenance costs. The eco park is the most species rich, hosting the highest number of natural constituent species, but also high number of disturbance tolerant species and the highest cover of weed species. The extensive grassland harbour similarly high number of species, but mostly of weedy character. Our results support that reconstructing native grasslands as an alternative to traditional landscaping in urban-industrial areas can be economically and ecologically worthwhile. The higher costs of planning, plant material and implementation pay off in a short time and can lead to a win-win situation for nature and economy.