A Dumfries project has been identified by the Scottish Government as a leading example of how to make Scotland greener and healthier.

The Crichton Development Company's project at Ladyfield in Dumfries, which was supported by the Council, has been selected by the Scottish Government as an exemplar project, leading the way in the drive to make Scotland greener and healthier.

Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing, Nicola Sturgeon, has revealed 11 low-carbon communities of the future. The projects have been selected to further the objectives of the Scottish Sustainable Communities Initiative (SSCI).

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SSCI encourages the creation of places that are designed and built to last, where a high quality of life can be achieved and that demonstrate how we can reduce our ecological footprint. It was launched in June 2008. It seeks to achieve a step change in design, quality and environmental standards of new housing developments and to lead to the exemplar projects being developed.

Councillor Roger Grant, chairman of the Council's Planning, Housing and Environment Services committee, said: "It is great news that a Dumfries and Galloway project has been recognised as being at the forefront of developing sustainable communities throughout Scotland. This is another significant step towards regenerating Dumfries as the capital of the region."

Gordon Mann, managing director of the Crichton Development Company, added: "We're delighted to get this recognition of the work we've don on the Ladyfield site. "This project will be an important part of the work being done at the Crichton in response to the challenges of climate change. We need to radically rethink how we create genuine sustainable communities that are also great places to live and work."

(GK/BMcC)