An ecotown to be built in south Devon has been granted permission for planning this week. The town, called Sherford is the second of the Prince Charless model towns and will be built for 12,000 people. The first homes will include a free bicycle and 390ft wind turbines will power the mandatory low energy light bulbs.
With rooftops covered with grass and solar panels its no wonder that the town has been dubbed the greenest new settlement in Britain. Cars will be banned on some streets and the sun will heat the water supply. Work will begin this year to transform the rolling hills near Plymouth into an ecotown with 5,500 homes.
This is the second model town for Prince Charles. His first was named Poundbury and aimed to promote community spirit and beat crime. Poundbury was built in 1993 in Dorset.
Advisors of the Prince are hoping that half of the energy used in Sherford will come from renewable sources. Businesses will provide 7,000 jobs and the products to build them will hopefully come from a 50m radius to cut carbon emissions of the building process. Shops and businesses will have grass covered rooftops or the outside will be covered with a thin layer of rubble to attract insects and birds.
Although the premise of the town is modern, the style and layout will be traditional. The centre of town will be a Georgian-style high street modelled after the Wiltshire market town of Marlborough. To stay traditional, no building will exceed five stories and no uPVC windows will be used. There will also be a dedicated cricket pitch and bowling green.
Homes, shops and schools will all be within walking distance to cut car use and waste and sewage will be recycled to reduce carbon emissions.
However, not everyone is welcoming the new development. When the plan was first brought to council, there were 3,000 objections from neighbouring communities. The town will concrete over a large amount of green countryside, destroying numerous eco habitats. Most of the objections were dropped when the communities were asked to help with the design process.
The Prince has said he wants to build again the types of places we all know strike a chord in our, by now, rather bewildered hearts, however 'modern' we are - places that convey an everlasting human story of meaning and belonging.
All in all Sherford may just be cooler than Disneyland.
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Posted under Articles, Environmental News
This post was written by Christine Pinella on May 16, 2008