Scotland plans first carbon-neutral community

Members of the Scottish parliament (MSPs) will be presented with preliminary plans for Scotland's first eco-town this week, it has emerged.

The Sunday Herald reported that a regeneration project consisting of 5,000 eco-homes is currently in the works for the country.

Banks Development is expected to present plans for the 1,200-acre site at Cardenden in Fife to MSPs this week and formally publish its vision statement for the project at an event in Edinburgh this Thursday.

It is thought that a planning application for the project site will be submitted in the autumn and will include provisions for 1,250 designated affordable homes, transport links and new schools, as well as a cemetery and a number of public parks.

"The proposals we are putting forward for Cardenden will set new standards in the delivery of zero-carbon developments in Scotland," Colin Anderson of Banks Development told the newspaper.

Other UK-based eco-towns include The Wintles in Shropshire, an eco-community where houses have a number of low-carbon features, including solar thermal panels and double-glazed windows.