Roundhouse (eco-dwelling)

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Tony Wrench and Jane Faith built their roundhouse in the winter of 1997/1998. Their home sits in the woods of Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, near the village of Newport in Wales.

The roundhouse is an example of natural building, green building, and sustainable design. It was built without planning permission, and so has become the focus of a battle between the local authority, which wishes to destroy the house, and the couple. It is a “radical experiment” in affordable housing (costing only a few thousand pounds for materials) and low-carbon living ^[1]. It has attracted national British media attention.

The couple designed the house themselves and used their own labour and that of friends, including their permaculture group. They used locally available materials, which meant primarily wood. They used cordwood construction, a technique common in the pioneer days of deciduous North America, but which they unknowingly re-invented.