New challenge to eco towns

A new doubt over a proposed eco town has emerged after a local councillor said plans to build a plant that would convert waste into energy were a non-starter.

Speaking at a meeting of West Sussex County Council on Friday, council leader Henry Smith said the scale of the Ford eco town near Littlehampton, which would have 6,000 homes, was not enough to support the plant, the Littlehampton Gazette Reports.

He said: "Six thousand houses could not provide enough waste to power an energy-from-waste plant, so the case for it could not be made."

Councillor Smith went on to argue that the equivalent of 15,000 heavy goods vehicle journeys a year would be needed to supply a plant to power a town of that size, which he said brought into question the "eco" status of the proposal.

Should the Ford proposals fail to be approved, those wanting to live in a green way in Sussex may opt to use the self build method to create their own eco home.

In Norfolk, local councils have outlined what they say are more viable alternatives than the proposed eco town at the site of the old RAF Coltishall air base, egovmonitor.com reports.

The councils are sending their proposals in a letter to housing minister Caroline Flint.