Prototype 'zero carbon' home to become 'commercial reality'

Plans have been unveiled for one of the UK's first "zero-carbon" homes.

Eco-friendly features of the house include an energy-producing wind turbine and solar panels on the roof.

Bath and shower water is reused for toilet flushing and water butts collect rainwater from the roof for watering the garden.

The house will also feature low energy appliances, bicycle storage, recycling facilities and a compost.

The prototype has been created by Aberdeen-based builders the Stewart Milne Group and aims to meet the Government's new Code for Sustainable Homes.

A star rating will be given to new homes, with a maximum of six stars indicating "zero-carbon" design.

The Stewart Milne home is expected to achieve a five-star rating.

Glenn Allison, managing director of the group, said: "The single biggest impact on our business will be climate change and we felt we should take an industry lead by building a commercially viable house that reflected the Government's objective to achieve zero-carbon houses within a decade.

"Our decision to create this potentially five-star house as a commercial reality gives us the opportunity to show key influencers in the housing sector that it is feasible to build low carbon houses in an affordable fashion."

Homes currently account for 27% of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions at around 40 million tonnes a year.

Government plans to tackle climate change through the building of more sustainable, zero-carbon homes were unveiled in December.

The term means the building must use less energy than it generates over a set period of time.

The Government said it wanted to see all homes zero-carbon by 2016.

Chancellor Gordon Brown announced in his pre-budget speech last year that the environmentally-friendly homes would be exempt from stamp duty.

Green campaigners Friends of the Earth welcomed news of the project.

Scotland's energy campaigner Liz Murray, said: "This is a welcome move by one of the country's leading house builders.

"The key to low- and zero-carbon housing is maximising energy efficiency of these homes in the first instance and embedding within the design a means by which energy can be generated using micropower technologies as part of the structure.

"The sooner all developers do this the better."

The house will be launched at an event hosted by Building Research and Consultancy (BRE) in Watford, Herts in June.