Passive Houses are the highest (voluntary) standard of ultra-low energy efficient housing. Only 1,000 or so have been built to date in the U.K. My proposal is to allow these, and carbon positive settlements of up to 100 people to be built under a new section of the Permitted Development Rights, i.e. without the need for Planning Permission.
There are many hundreds of water mills left derelict at the start of the Industrial Revolution and as many textile mills left empty at the end of it. Mostly they have Listed Building status and/or on the buildings at risk registers.
The idea is to allow development on these properties with the proviso that the mills be restored with new functions. Also, that mini-hydro plants or other forms of renewable energy be installed on site to provide excess energy generated to the National Grid.
In the case of water mills they stand sentinel in rural locations. The natural hierarchy of settlement is for hamlets to cluster around them. Passive buildings should be the norm for developments of this nature.
By default, Passive Houses are of the highest standard of design but limiting criteria such as scale and height should be incorporated in the legislation.
It is usual to limit the choice of building materials in the PDRs but there should be a mechanism to encourage innovation in the use of materials and construction methods – a new “vernacular”.
Hydro Hamlets could be oases of beautifully crafted buildings, literally if there is a mill pond incorporated. Infrastructure will be needed to link them, like a string of pearls.
This is a small-scale approach to the massive housing demand but will help to redress imbalance in rural and urban living.
Skilled artisans, green engineers and technicians will require training and they can in turn help to retrofit existing housing stock.
Further incentive could be to have the best designed developments bid for new eco-villages and even eco-towns thus attracting major house builders to the cause.
2244-11