Urban grasslands in the Metropolitan Region of Buenos Aires: A debate on the importance and challenges of their conservation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25260/EA.24.34.3.0.2433Keywords:
citizen participation, conservation, fragmentation, native and exotic plants, plant diversity, urban environments, urban protected areasAbstract
The conservation of vegetation in urban environments, particularly grasslands, is a seldom-addressed yet highly relevant issue from both ecological and social perspectives. In this article, we open a discussion on the importance of urban and peri-urban grasslands, the challenges of conserving biodiversity in these areas, and the related socioecological issues. To support this discussion, we conducted surveys of plant diversity in five urban grasslands within the Metropolitan Region of Buenos Aires (RMBA), where socio-environmental organizations actively engage in conservation efforts. First, we explore the problems of grasslands, the definition of urban grasslands and their various interpretations in the literature, and society’s perception and appreciation of these areas. We summarize the benefits that urban grasslands provide to society, including biodiversity conservation, recreation and environmental education. Next, we describe the specific characteristics of five RMBA grassland areas designated for conservation. In these areas, despite the fragmentation of the urban matrix and the presence of invasive exotic species, a significant proportion of native species typical of the Pampean grassland remains, which are valuable for conserving urban biodiversity. This highlights the ecological importance of these areas and the need to develop effective strategies for conserving and restoring urban grassland fragments. Finally, we examine the advantages and potential opportunities these fragments represent for the region and propose solutions to the identified challenges, such as implementing suitable management practices to reduce exotic species invasion and restore grasslands.
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Copyright (c) 2024 Cecilia D. Molina, Sofía Campana, Mariana Ciavattini, Sara Aradvari Horvat, María C. Silvoso, María M. Caffaro, Mora Jeroham, Pamela Graff
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