Selby on eco-town site shortlist

Willow Green is one of four proposed sites in the Selby district

Four sites in Selby are being considered as locations for a new eco-town in Yorkshire.

Fourteen sites in the Leeds City Region (LCR) were originally shortlisted as possible locations for one of the first new towns in England in 40 years.

The LCR incorporates towns and cities in West, South and North Yorkshire.

A study into the sites' suitability has now whittled those 14 locations down to four in Selby, North Yorks. By 2020, 10 eco-towns are to be built in England.

The new environmentally-friendly towns - low-energy, carbon-neutral developments built from recycled materials - will be the first new towns since the 1960s.

Resident protests

But the plans have proved controversial in some areas with campaigners saying the idea is a way to evade planning controls.

The four recommended sites in Selby are Gascoigne Wood, Burn Airfield, Church Fenton and Willow Green, between Eggborough and Kellington.

In March protestors took drums along to Selby town centre in a campaign to show their opposition for the carbon-neutral homes.

A spokesman for residents said the new town would be double the size of Selby and could take business away from the area and increase traffic and noise.

A spokesman for the LCR board said further investigation was taking place into the suitability of the four Selby locations for an eco-town.

It said a public board meeting would consider the study's recommendations on 12 June.