Developers have unveiled futuristic plans for a village of homes made from used car tyres and empty beer cans.

Experts claim this type of recycled house could end the misery of soaring water and power bills for Sussex households.

Biotecture, which plans to build 16 one- and two-bedroom Earthships at Brighton Marina, says the buildings will heat and cool themselves, harness wind and solar power and harvest their own rainwater for domestic use - meaning no utility bills for the occupants.

At least half of the village, which has already been christened The Lizard, would be taken up with affordable housing while the other homes would cost between £250,000 and £350,000.

Development director Daren Howarth said: "This could pave the way for dozens of Earthship colonies around the United Kingdom. It's a very powerful, iconic building concept that has the potential to revolutionise the way we live.

"For those living in them it would mean they could be completely off the grid if they wanted. They would have low running costs and they would be living in an attractive space.

"Energy bills are going over £1,000 a year and they're not going to get cheaper. If we can put a compromise together where we don't have these bills then I would prefer that option and that's without even thinking about climate change."

The development would share a site east of Marine Gate, south of Cliff Road and The Cliff and north of Marine Drive with a nature reserve.

Earthships use simple physics to enable total self-sufficiency.

Heating is via large, south-facing windows and extra-thick walls made of worn tyres and discarded beer bottles or cans which capture the sun's energy then release it as the rooms cool, using the same principle as a storage heater.

From the roof, rainwater runs into 20,000 litre storage units, where it is filtered for tap water, before being used in "planters" to water home-grown vegetables and then being recycled into the toilets.

Electricity comes from solar panels and wind turbines. Even human waste is sent from a septic tank into a reed bed, which converts it into fertiliser for a nearby tree nursery.

The ground floor is open-plan with the bathroom close to the kitchen so the water system has less work to do.

Michael Reynolds, a "biotect", or eco-architect, spent 14 years developing the idea for Earthships, which derive their name from the earth-filled reclaimed tyres that make up their exterior walls; the rubber rounds are said to have a lifespan of 1,000 years.

Mr Reynolds designed and built the first example in Taos, New Mexico, in 1988, and still lives in it.

Viewed in the context of global shortages of land, energy and non-renewable resources, a compact home that keeps you warm in winter and cool in summer, that generates its own electricity, collects its own rainwater and treats its own sewage is being seen as a revolutionary idea.

In the UK alone 40 million tyres are discarded each year - an Earthship uses 3,000.

The plan was put to residents living near the site last weekend and Mr Howarth said those who had initially been opposed were persuaded otherwise.

A city council spokesman said: "We've shown with the Jubilee Library and other recent developments we're leading the way nationally in sustainable building. The idea of an Earthship-style housing development is innovative and exciting. It fits with our commitment to sustainable building and with our role in tackling climate change and carbon emissions."

Should the plan be approved by the planning committee, the company hopes to have the completed houses on the market next year.