What does eco mean in 'eco town'?

Answer 1

An eco town or city is a city or place that has been built and developed to be environmentally friendly and sustainable

The standards eco-towns should meet include the following (as set out in the 'draft Planning Policy Statement: eco-towns'):

• Affordable housing: a minimum of 30% affordable housing in each eco-town
• Zero-carbon: eco-towns must be zero-carbon over the course of a year (not including transport emissions)
• Green space: a minimum of 40% of eco-towns must be comprised of greenspace
• Waste and recycling: eco-towns must have higher recycling rates and make use of waste in new ways
• Homes: homes must reach Code for Sustainable Homes level 4 or higher (surprisingly not the highest standard available, casting doubt on the credibility of these requirements)
• Employment: at least one job opportunity per house accessible by public transport, walking or cycling (although the standards are silent on how housing developers might guarantee this and it is largely discredited in the current economic crisis)
• Services: there must be shops and a primary school within easy walk of every single home, and all the services expected from a town of up to 20,000 homes
• Transition/construction: facilities should be in place before and during construction
• Public transport: real-time public transport information in every home, a public transport link within ten minutes walk of every home
• Community: there must be a mixture of housing types and densities, and residents must have a say in how their town is run, by governance in new and innovative ways

There are further standards on water, biodiversity and other issues