1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Portsmouth
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Portsmouth’s Urban Meadows
Short description of the intervention
In 2017, Park Service of Portsmouth City Council has introduced a new approach to its annual 'In Bloom' campaign, aiming at increasing urban biodiversity, promoting pollinating insects and making the city more colourful (1,5).
As part of the initiative, 15 wildflower meadows have been created with information boards at various spots in the city including parks, gardens and schoolyards as well. Planted seed mixes had been carefully tested and selected to fit the local environmental conditions, including native species and promote pollination (5). The campaign has been appreciated by citizens and visitors of the Urban Meadows (5).
The urban meadows are planted as a part of an annual campaign (3)
Address

Milton Park
Portsmouth, Southsea PO4 8PR, UK
Portsmouth
PO4 8PR
United Kingdom

Location
The NBS is a city-wide initiative, the GIS point marks the centre of the city
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Natural Heritage Area/Untouched nature
Website of the intervention
http://strongisland.co/2017/07/25/portsmouths-urban-meadows/
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
unknown
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2017
End date of the intervention
ongoing
Present stage of the intervention
Ongoing
Please specify "other" stage of the intervention
Urban meadows are planted as a part of annual campaign (3)
Goals of the intervention
1. Sowing of meadows and wild flowers in urban parks across Portsmouth City (5)
2. Boost nectar and pollen levels in the urban environment to support wildlife such as bees and butterflies and thus helping pollination of other plants and local ecosystem (5)
3. Improve the appearance of a greater number of public spaces (1)
Quantitative targets
- Creation of 15 new urban meadows in the city (2017) (4)
Monitoring indicators defined
number of urban meadows created in the city
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Habitat and biodiversity restoration
Habitat and biodiversity conservation
Green space creation and/or management
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Creation of opportunities for recreation
Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What types of conservation goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?
Species-focused
Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets?
Protect species
Undertake specific measures to protect species
Undertake specific measures to protect native species
Undertake specific measures to protect valued species
Means for conservation governance
Raise public awareness
Public engagement
What types of restoration goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?
Species-focused
Ecosystem-focused
What activities are implemented to realize the restoration goals and targets?
Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
Restore species (native, endangered, or unspecified)
Restore native species
Restore valued species
Public engagement
Implementation activities
- Testing and selection of a special wildflower seed mix suitable for the local conditions, cost-effective and includes mostly native plants, require relatively little maintenance and promote pollination (5)
- Mapping of areas and plots suitable for meadow on public green areas (eg. parks) and in school premises (5)
- Creation of a new butterfly house at Cumberland House garden that will complement the established wildflower meadows and grassland found at other semi-natural open spaces within the city. (1)
- Installation of Information boards explaining the purpose of the wildflower meadows (5)
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Maintenance and management of urban nature
Monitoring and maintenance of habitats and/or biodiversity
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Grey infrastructure featuring greens
Green playgrounds and school grounds
Parks and urban forests
Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces
Vegetation Type
Other
Amenities offered by the NBS
Unknown
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Regulating services
Pollination
Habitat and supporting services
Habitats for species
Cultural services
Aesthetic appreciation
Recreation
Intellectual interactions (scientific and / or educational)
Physical and experiential interactions with plants and animals
Scale
Spatial scale
Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Local government/Municipality
Citizens or community groups
Governance
Governance arrangements
Government-led
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
The project was initiated by the Park Service of the Portsmouth's City Council as a new approach to its annual 'In Bloom' campaign. (5) The project was realised with the financial sponsorship of COLAS and Portsmouth Water. (1,5)
Key actors - initiating organization
Local government/municipality
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Local government/municipality
Public sector institution
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Dissemination of information and education
Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Unknown
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Voluntary (spontaneous)
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Please specify other vegetation type
wildflower meadows
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Co-finance for NBS
Yes
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
Less than €10,000
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
£4,500
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
A budget of £4,500 was available for the initiative from the sponsorship of Portsmouth Water and COLAS (5)
Source(s) of funding
Public local authority budget
Corporate investment
Type of fund(s) used
Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Business models
Green densification model
Urban offsetting model (biodiversity or water)
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Public actor (e.g. municipality)
Type of innovation
Technological
Product innovation
Social
Cultural innovation
Please specify technological innovation
urban meadows : have significant environmental benefits as the meadows attract more insects such as bees and butterflies which will help with the pollination of other plants in the area, boosting the local ecosystem of the inner-city environment. (ref 1)
Please specify social innovation
Urban meadows introduced as part of a new approach to the city's annual floral campaign held by Portsmouth City Council (ref3)
Novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Green space and habitat
Promotion of naturalistic styles of landscape design for urban development
Increased green space area
Increased conversion of degraded land or soil
Increased number of species present
Enhanced support of pollination
Increased spread of native/heirloom/open-pollinated seed
Description of environmental benefits
- With the Urban Meadow initiative the green space area of the city increased, reflecting a diverse set of meadow and wildflower plants (1,2,5)
- Meadow seeds thrive best in low nutrient soils, thus supporting degraded areas (5)
- The sown seed mix included native plant species, thus promoting the local ecosystem and biodiversity (5)
- The selected and applied seed mixes support pollinating insect species such as bees and butterflies (5)
- The installation of a Butterfly House also promote the population growth of butterflies, whose number has reduced by 69% over a 20 year period until 2017 (5)
Economic impacts
Unknown
Description of economic benefits
Unknown
Social and cultural impacts
Cultural heritage and sense of place
Increased appreciation for natural spaces
Education
Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
Increased awareness of NBS and their benefits
Description of social and cultural benefits
- "The Urban Meadows have been well received by residents and visitors, with the Parks Team receiving regular verbal, emailed and written compliments and feedback, as well as social media proving a popular way for residents and visitors to share images" (5)
- Through the information boards, locals can learn about the importance of wildflower meadows and their role in urban biodiversity (5)
Type of reported impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
Unknown
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
No information available
Please specify other method used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
All sites were monitored between June to September, with photographic records being taken of the displays. (5)
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
Unknown as of November 2020
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
Collection of monitoring data continuously throughout the project to aid evaluation
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Observation (including virtual surveillance methods)
Other
Where can this data be accessed? Please include a link to a report or web-page.
https://democracy.portsmouth.gov.uk/documents/s17157/08.0%20Urban%20Meadows.pdf
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Yes
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
Yes
Link to monitoring/evaluation reports
https://democracy.portsmouth.gov.uk/documents/s17157/08.0%20Urban%20Meadows.pdf
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
Unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Yes
Mode(s) of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Online Forum
Submission of monitoring data (citizen observation)
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
Portsmouth’s Urban Meadows. Strong Island
Portsmouth City Council 2017
List of references
1. Gonella, P. (2017). Portsmouth’s Urban Meadows. Strong Island. Accessed on November 12, 2020, http://strongisland.co/2017/07/25/portsmouths-urban-meadows/
2. Roope, C. (2017). Urban meadows to be introduced in Portsmouth. Families Online. Accessed on November 12, 2020, https://www.familiesonline.co.uk/local/portsmouth/in-the-know/urban-meadows-to-be-introduced-in-portsmouth
3. Portsmouth City Council. (2017). Portsmouth to bloom with urban meadows. Website not available
4. Express FM. (2017). Urban meadows to be sown across Portsmouth. Accessed on November 12, 2020, https://www.expressfm.com/news/local-news/urban-meadows-to-be-sown-across-portsmouth/
5. Director of Culture and City Development - Portsmouth City Council. (2017). Urban Meadows in Portsmouth. Portsmouth City Council, Accessed on November 12, 2020, https://democracy.portsmouth.gov.uk/documents/s17157/08.0%20Urban%20Meadows.pdf
Comments and notes
Public Images
Urban Meadow Bed at Lake Road, Portsmouth (2017)
Urban Meadow Bed at Lake Road, Portsmouth (2017)
Photographer: Adrian Rozier, retrieved 05/15/2018
Portsmouth Urban Meadows
Source: http://www.strongisland.co/2017/07/25/portsmouths-urban-meadows/
Portsmouth Urban Meadows
Source: http://www.strongisland.co/2017/07/25/portsmouths-urban-meadows/
Portsmouth Urban Meadows
Source: http://www.strongisland.co/2017/07/25/portsmouths-urban-meadows/