MNN - Mother Nature Network

 

Eco Anglophiles who dream of living a low-impact — but comfortable — life in the British countryside, your dream home est arrivé. Despite its scoff-able size of 6,000-square feet, it’s been designed with utmost environmental TLC. But it will cost you … $5.5 million to be precise.

 

Yesterday, TreeHugger shared news that the finishing touches on Barnsley Hill Farm, a lavish property on five acres in the bucolic Cotswolds region of west-central England, have been completed and the home is now open for viewings. The six-bedroom compound boasts a 25-seat movie theatre, indoor pool, hot tub built for eight, and a spacious “agricultural storage area.” And here’s the crazy thing: according to the developers, Barnsley Hill Farm has the carbon footprint equivalent to a two-bedroom apartment.

 

How’s that possible? Barnsley Hill Farm's green features include a seasonal thermal heat storage system, a heat recovery system, an on-site sewage treatment plant, space-age insulation, and a rainwater recovery system. Most importantly, the house is extremely airtight. And to add to the home’s rustic eco-centricity, the structure isn’t even entirely a new build … it’s a revamp of a 400-year-old home.

 

I do have slight reservations about Barnsley Hill Farm but I’m also quite wooed. I’m also thinking that with a little creativity and compromise it could be turned into a multi-family home or some kind of green commune (there’s certainly room in the hot tub) to even further reduce its eco-impact. And although opulent, multimillion dollar green mansions aren’t exactly the flavor of the moment, eco-entrepreneur Paul Lavelle of Stonbee Developments has the right idea: somebody with a lot of money is going to buy this, so might as well make it as low-impact as possible.

Anyway, I'm going to play an eco Robin Leach for a moment. Let’s take a look, shall we?