Hay meadows on floodplains have been acknowledged as land of prime economic importance for many centuries while a good hay crop and land for grazing animals were critically important for food and clothing (cows/sheep), transport and the military (horses). Nowadays, different aspects of economic benefits are important. Our publications examine the value of floodplain meadows for flood defence, water purification, carbon storage and biodiversity conservation, in addition to sustainable food production in traditional meadow management.

Our publications

Lawson, Clare; Rothero, Emma; Gowing, David; Nisbet, Tom; Barsoum, Nadia; Broadmeadow, Samantha and Skinner, Ann (2018). The natural capital of floodplains: management, protection and restoration to deliver greater benefits. The Valuing Nature Programme

McGinlay, J.; Gowing, D.J.G. and Budds, J. (2017). The threat of abandonment in socio-ecological landscapes: Farmers' motivations and perspectives on high nature value grassland conservation. Environmental Science & Policy, 69 pp. 39–49

Rouquette, J.R.; Posthumus, H.; Morris, J.; Hess, T.M.; Dawson, Q.L. and Gowing, D.J.G. (2011). Synergies and trade-offs in the management of lowland rural floodplains: an ecosystem services approach. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 56(8) pp. 1566–1581.

Posthumus, H.; Rouquette, J. R.; Morris, J.; Gowing, D. J. G. and Hess, T. M. (2010). A framework for the assessment of ecosystem goods and services; a case study on lowland floodplains in England. Ecological Economics, 69(7) pp. 1510–1523.

Morris, J.; Bailey, A. P.; Lawson, C. S; Leeds-Harrison, P. B.; Alsop, D. and Vivash, R. (2008). The economic dimensions of integrating flood management and agri-environment through washland creation: a case from Somerset, England. Journal of Environmental Management, 88(2) pp. 372–381.