The government in England is planning on building 15 eco-towns...read a selection of views on the areas

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Most bring up the same issues - poor infrastructure and a lack of local jobs/services which will lead to more congestion and overcrowding on public transport, and the building on floodplains.

Personally, I agree with those that believe these "eco-towns" are nothing more than the government trying to be seen to be doing something for the environment while ruining the countryside and building on greenbelt land without actually achieving anything. Rather than building these "eco-towns" why not simply make it a regulation for ALL new builds to be built to the ecological standard that they intend for these areas, thus ensuring that all new properties are built with the environment in mind? With most of these sites in the South where congestion and poor public transport is already an issue I do think that any ecological benefits will be erased by the problems caused by congestion and other problems. Why not instead of building these new properties give grants to current homeowners to make improvements to their properties that will reduce energy consumption etc and do more on improving the current problems with public transport.

The government just wants to be seen as doing something while really doing very little other than what they had already planned. There were already protests over the number of new homes the government want to see built - now they are just trying to slip this through by slapping on the "eco" label. The government is the same as those car manufactures that try to use the "green" label to sell their product.

What are your views on this topic? Are one of these towns being built near you?

Yep, putting the word 'eco' in front of anything doesn't make it right. I don't think they would eco-construction, for example!

Ohhhh look which supermarket chain has jumped on the bandwagon!

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Safeway, before it was Morrisons, tried and failed at the planning stages, to build a supermarket in Aberdeen with a 'living' roof.
The Government are clearly trying to do something, but as usual money talks!

A pro eco-town viewpoint

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I don't think that eco-towns will stop the problems with people being unable to get on the housing market. What's to stop someone buying one of these houses and then selling it at a much higher price by promoting it's eco-credentials? Are there going to be restrictions to stop someone buying one of the houses as a 2nd home? Are 1st time buyers going to be given priority?

It also doesn't solve the issue of building on the floodplains either.

Many urban areas have brownfield sites that would benefit from regeneration - why aren't any of these eco-towns sited in such places? Surely far more people will benefit (from improved transport, green spaces etc) from these sites being redeveloped than having the facilities for the lucky few than get to live in an eco-town.

I live in a very small city and even here there are loads of buildings that are pretty much abandoned (and the council refuse planning permission to change some of these into homes leaving them standing empty) yet there are new homes being built around the city on the green space.

One of the Eco-Town sites has been withdrawn.

Read more -

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Which really proves the point that putting 'eco' in front of a word does not make it so.

Precisely. I wonder how many others will also be rejected (or will it be easier to say how many will actually go ahead?)

Isn't a Tesco owned company the sole backers on some of these projects?

Tesco are backing some projects but don't know how much so. Personally I don't think Tesco have the highest environmental standards to hold up the environmentally friendly intent of the eco-towns...

Exactly. Other companies reluctance to get involved speaks volumes about the projects!

Plans for another of the 15 planned eco-towns have been scrapped after the Wellcome Trust refused to sell the land to Tesco who were to develop the eco-town. So far, 5 plans have been scrapped.

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Good on the Wellcome Trust!

It's not looking good for the eco-town plans. Now only 1 or 2 towns of the 10 remaining proposals may actually go ahead!

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