Five new villages of environmetally friendly homes are planned for construction in the UK and construction firms are being invited to bid for the tenders. The developments are planned as a test bed for five “eco-towns” planned by Gordon Brown. In the UK, 40 million tonnes of CO2 are emitted each year, 27% of which comes from housing and there are hopes that the new eco-friendly houses will help reduce this figure and make all new homes in England carbon neutral by 2016. Already, the British government have announced that the new-zero carbon homes under £500,000 will be exempt from stamp duty from October 2007.

The eco villages will feature ’standard’ alternative energy sources such as solar power and wind turbines alongside newer technologies such as district heating systems which tap into energy given off by industrial and passive heating systems. Warmth given off by cookers and electronic devices such as televsions may also be used as an energy source.

The first eco-villages will be located in Bristol and Peterborough. Bidders are encouraged not only to produce plans for environmentally friendly buildings, but also homes that will be affordable to buy and cheap to run.

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