Wicklow County Council is to build 19 eco-friendly houses as part of a pilot project which may see permanent changes to the design of local authority housing.
The new houses, to be built in the west Wicklow village of Knockanna, will utilise elements of "passive" heating, solar air heating, pellet stoves and high-grade insulation. They will have no conventional form of central heating.
Considerable savings on traditional heating methods are envisaged for the occupiers of the new homes, with fuel bills reduced by 75 per cent.
It is estimated that the new homes will also reduce average CO2 emissions by 95 per cent.
While the houses may work out slightly more expensive to build than traditional council houses, they are being supported by a grant of €8,000 per house by Sustainable Energy Ireland.
This will go "most of the way" towards covering the difference, according to Bill Quigley, whose consultancy company, NuTech, is advising Wicklow County Council on the construction.
The houses will be conventional-looking semi-detached, three-bedroom homes in the first phase of 10, with a number of detached, three-bedroom homes in the second phase.
Wicklow County Council said it was hoping to start construction before the end of this year, and have houses available in 2007.
Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) is grant aiding the homes through its House of Tomorrow programme. The programme aims to accelerate improvements in the quality of energy features in Irish housing. Further information from the SEI website on http://www.irish-energy.ie
