A 36ft-high wind turbine could soon be erected on a

hillside at Hanley Swan, near Malvern, to provide green energy for a private house.

Ian and Joanna Bowles, of The Haven, Blackmore Park, are building a new house in the former walled garden of the historic Blackmore Park estate, using wind and solar power for their electricity and hot water.

They aim to put a wind turbine on a nearby hillside and 500 sq ft of solar panels on the roof of a stable block near the house.

The couple live in the former under-gardener's cottage on 15 acres of previously wooded land on the edge of the ancient Malvern Chase, which they have already planted with more than 2,000 trees.

"I started thinking about our energy requirements and I went to the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales, who recommended solar hot water heating, which they claim is more cost-effective than double glazing," said Mr Bowles.

"In summer, the surplus hot water will go into the swimming pool. The solar panels make more heat in summer and a wind turbine makes a good all-season combination.

"My intention is to use the turbine for most of our electricity, with about a quarter generated by the solar panels."

Despite neighbours' worries about glare from the solar panels and fears that the turbine will spoil their views of the Malvern Hills and cause a noise nuisance, the plans look set to be approved tonight.

Planning officers say development policy supports schemes that take advantage of renewable energy and that every scheme, however small, contributes to the overall reduction of CO2 emissions.

They say the turbine should be painted matt black and would not be too prominent as it would be against a backdrop of trees.

It would be almost 300ft from the nearest neighbours, who would only hear its rhythmic swishing sound in strong winds, when there would also be more background noise.

Officers say there should be no glare from the solar panels as they are designed to absorb light, not reflect it.