Planning permission for an estate of 35 environmentally friendly homes in Pontardawe has been given the green light.
The site is being hailed as one of the world's first truly net carbon neutral neighbourhoods by Cardiff-based developers, Sero Homes, after Neath Port Talbot Council granted full planning permission for the Parc Hadau estate to be built in Rhyd-Y-Fro.
Sero Homes will build the houses at the site and its sister company, Sero Energy, will construct the renewable energy infrastructure at the £8m eco-housing scheme, which is being built on scrubland next to protected ancient woodland.
The homes will feature solar panels, electric car charging points, and ground source heat pumps - a central heating system that uses pipes buried underground to re-distribute heat throughout the buildings.
Built using a 'very low energy' building design, ventilation systems will keep warmth inside the buildings while ensuring fresh, filtered air is circulated around the 11 two-bed, 22 three-bed and two four-bed homes.
Excess energy will be stored in battery packs and re-distributed to the national grid. Residents won't even have to pay any energy bills if they stay within certain levels of usage.
In-home monitoring systems will continuously track the carbon emissions of energy that is imported from the national grid, and ensure this is balanced by the renewable energy exported back into the system from the renewable energy sources at Parc Hadau.
Sero Homes claim that this will mean Parc Hadau will go significantly beyond the Energy Performance Certificate 'A' rating and exceed the current Welsh Building Regulations requirements for sustainability.
According to planning documents, a communal building with wooden decking connecting it to a garden area where people can "come together, socialise and sit out in the sun", will be the centre point of the development.
The homes won't be sold on the open market but will be available through long-term, index-linked tenures to avoid the "high deposits which prevent people from getting on the property ladder," according to Sero Homes.
The development would be accessed from Waunsterw via Commercial Road in Rhyd-Y-Fro and become a "sustainable extension of the existing community".
James Williams, Sero Homes' managing director, said: “The principles underpinning our vision for housing are simple—people’s homes should minimise the harm done to our planet and they shouldn’t cost the earth to run.
"The current housing market is failing to achieve this, and Parc Hadau will bring to life - at scale - this vision for better homes for future generations.
“The climate change agenda may have gathered pace in recent years and months, demonstrated by UK Government net zero carbon emissions targets for 2050 – but the answers to these huge challenges are needed right now."
The estate is part of the Neath Port Talbot Local Development Plan, which aims to deliver another 8,760 homes by 2026. The LDP states it is expected that, eventually, a total of 115 homes will be built at the Parc Hadau site.
The planning reference for viewing on the Neath Port Talbot Council website is: P2019/5543.
