Secret eco-community wins legal battle

A secret eco-community hidden in the heart of the Welsh countryside has won the right to exist following a ten year legal battle.

The Brithdir Mawr community, in north Pembrokeshire, has won retrospective planning permission for its ‘hobbit style’ roundhouse village in the national park.

Permission for a total of eight roundhouses in the village has been granted, to house six permanent residents, five long-term visitors, and ten campers and day visitors.

The buildings are fully sustainable and blend in with the surrounding environment. Energy is generated on site, and fresh water is collected locally.

Residents at the site earn their keep through handicrafts, and by working the land according to the principles of permaculture.

Authorities were unaware of the hidden eco-community until 1997, when the straw-bale grass covered dwelling was spotted by chance from a helicopter.

Attempts to bulldoze the village were protested by residents, who eventually won the right to a court hearing.

Resident and community founder, Emma Orbach, said she is really excited and happy that the fight is over, and that the village can now put its focus entirely on ‘pioneering a new way of life’.

The decision to allow the village will be reviewed by the National Park Authority in 2011.