The study aimed at the identification of favourable land use options for semi-natural grassland management and preservation. Economic assessments of energy recovery by the integrated generation of solid fuel and biogas from biomass (IFBB) in comparison with dry fermentation (OF) and hay combustion systems (HC), beef cattle production (BC) and non-refining landscape preservation measures, such as mulching (MU) and composting (CO), were carried out in this study. Energy recovery systems made profitable use of semi-natural grasslands with the highest economic returns attained by IFBB-AO (Return On Investment, ROI: 22.75%) and HC (ROI: 22.00%) systems, followed by the IFBB-SA (ROI: 7.71%) and the DF system (ROI: 6.22%). Animal husbandry (BC) and non-refining management systems (MU, CO) were not profitable considering the current framework conditions. Input parameters critical for profitability were modified in order to identify influences of changing framework conditions. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.