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Imagine a community where children play freely in indigenous gardens, where you and your neighbours share cars, where cycling lanes take you to nearby restaurants and shops, where all waste is recycled and where fresh fruit and vegetables are dropped off on your doorstep.

Though it may sound idyllic, a pie in the sky some might say, it could soon turn into reality on our doorstep.

Because as Sarah Alsen, coordinator of the One Planet Living Programme (OPL) in SA, will tell you, the plans have been drawn up, the estimated carbon footprint tallied, the number of separate waste bins calculated, and the producers of fresh organic food already identified.

Alsen has been drawn in to consult on a new development in the Sibaya precinct on Durban's north coast that would incorporate all the "green principles" of the pro-sustainability organisation.

And once all this comes together, said Alsen, KwaZulu-Natal will be home to the first One Planet Living eco-village on the African continent.

The One Planet Living Programme, launched in 1998 is a programme of Bioregional, an organisation that develops "solutions for sustainability".

OPL adheres to 10 guiding principles: zero carbon, zero waste, sustainable transport, sustainable materials, local and sustainable food, sustainable water, natural habitats and wildlife, culture and heritage, equity and fair trade and health and happiness.

The Sibaya precinct will be a sister community to that of four other successful OPL communities around the world forming an integral link in the concept of "green design".

"It's about taking green buildings one step further and creating an entire community based on sustainable principles," she said.

OPL's aim, said Alsen, is to build sustainable communities around the world.

"The aim is for people to live happily, yet using the planet's resources in a sustainable manner," she said.

And it is these guiding principles that Alsen is using in consultation with developers Tongaat Hulett in the Sibaya precinct.

"We were contacted two years ago and as the developers thought our principles were good and could be adopted in the building plan, we started a set of workshops and are now drawing up a sustainability action plan," said Alsen.

"We are so passionate and determined about the work we do because we, as humans cannot go on living the way we do and abusing resources, and we all need to do something as we only have one planet that we can live on," said Alsen.

At present, the human population is consuming more resources than the planet can provide.

She explained that OPL uses the "ecological footprint calculator" to determine the impact that development and human activity has on the planet's limited natural resources.

As the OPL website ominously states: "If everyone in the world lived as Americans do, we would need five planets to support us.

"And if everyone lived the way Europeans do, we'd need three planets."

OPL, using their guiding principles, looks at practical ways to reduce the impact on the planet by decreasing carbon emissions, decreasing waste and conserving energy.

These include: developing food gardens, looking at alternative sources of energy, and looking at ways to reduce waste.

And these are some of the features that the Sibaya precinct development would incorporate.

Alsen said it would be an important development that could inspire future similar eco-villages on the continent.

It is envisioned that about five and six thousand apartments will be built on six hilltops. "The valleys will be left free and there will be some free-standing homes.

"There will also be hotels and resorts on site together with commercial space," said Alsen.

She said that only 20 percent of the area will be developed and the rest of the area will be conserved.

The Sibaya precinct development, once completed as the first on the continent, will stand alongside five others.

These are the BedZED, One Gallion and One Brighton in the UK, Sonoma Mountain Village in California and Mata de Sesimbra in Portugal as certified One Planet Living communities.

The BedZED Eco-Village Development reduced the total environmental impact by about 25% simply by carefully choosing construction materials from locally sourced manufacturers.

Data also indicated that there were large reductions in the heating and hot water categories.

There are also on-site car pool facilities, separate waste bins in the flats, special showerheads and community gardens.

A football pitch, club house, dance studio and nursery were developed on site so that residents didn't have to travel to access these facilities.

A successful paper recycling scheme, Local Paper for London, is also used by BedZED residents.

Paper is collected, recycled and brought back to the site for use. A clothing and furniture swap shop is also running successfully at the eco-village as well as a bus shuttle system.

Photovoltaic cells were also widely used to provide electricity and the technology is all the while being perfected, she said.

And these can all be expected at the new development.

And all the many "alternative" gadgets and mechanisms are put in place so that the community is independent of the national supplier.

"The idea is that the community does not have to rely on the local grid," she explained.

And this idea might just be the key to the country's still shaky power supply.

All the steel beams are made of recycled material, the windows are triple glazed and there is no central heating.

There is a car pool on site. People can hire the car for a specified period of time.

Also the community is on a good public transport route which people can use.

There are also facilities for the collection of grey water and rainwater harvesting as well as a reclaimed water system. Most importantly, said Alsen, is that the developments serve as an educational facility.

"Technical tours will be conducted to show how the buildings are developed using enviro-friendly principles and people can come in and learn how to reduce their ecological footprint," she said.

According to the website, SA's ecological footprint is 2,3 hectares per person, which is greater than the total average of 2,2 ha/person.

Alsen said all that is now needed is a record of decision from the environmental impact assessment process and construction is expected to begin in early 2009.

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