Passionate, green experimenters are vital to the future of house building and lowering fuel bills.
By Caroline McGhie
'The Telegraph,'
Mark Edwards has turned into more than just an eco fan. It started when he became frustrated by the soaring fuel bills in his draughty Georgian house in the village of Shrawley in Worcestershire, tired of piling on the extra jumpers. He and his wife Lucy felt fuel-poor. Their elder son Jacob joined his school's eco-action committee and urged his parents to think green. The family, including younger son Nathaniel, lit upon the idea of building a new house in the garden which would incorporate all the latest green technology.
Like many great plans, it didn't work out exactly as they had hoped. There were huge delays, they lost their builder, Mark had to take on managing the project and it took four years to finish.
By this time Lucy wanted their existing house retrofitted with as much similar eco-technology as possible. Mark, exhausted and now cash-poor, put his eco creation, Valley Views, on the market at £550,000. "My family is proud really. Nathaniel has now joined the eco-action committee at school too."
