Campaigners were reported to be pleased that the plans for 32 homes and eight chalets, which were due to go before Highland Council on Monday, had been put on the back burner.

However, there were worries among the residents living near the Kilnhill Woods area that the planning application might be re-submitted in the future.

Local residents objected in their droves to the application to build the homes in local woodlands, fearing loss of an amenity for walking and recreational pursuits, as well as repercussions on the local environment and an unwelcome increase in traffic from the new houses.

The Highland Greens party who supported the scheme said that they would like to see the application for the eco-community re-visited.

"The Greens have been working towards getting the Forestry Commission to release land for people to have the opportunity to live and work in an environmentally friendly way in a forest setting, using the resources of the woodland to make a living," said party spokesperson Dr Eleanor Scott. "The Kilnhill scheme was far from perfect but it was a step in that direction."

Dr Scott said she was aware of the issue of protecting valuable habitats such as squirrel dreys and badger setts in the area, but thinks it is possible to design a way for people to live as part of the woodland environment without destroying it.

"I would encourage the Forestry Commission to look again at Kilnhill and see if it can be improved to meet those concerns as well as the concerns the Greens already raised," she said. "If that proves impossible I hope the Commission will not be discouraged from trying to establish innovative schemes elsewhere."

'The Forres Gazette' believes that issues surrounding drainage which had been raised by Highland Council contributed to the decision by the Forestry Commission to withdraw the scheme.

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