5: Building Talks... Net Zero - Episode 5: Tees Valley mayor on scaling up hydrogen production

Episode 5 of our Building Talks Net Zero podcast series features an interview with Ben Houchen, Tees Valley mayor, on his ambitions to make the region a hub for the government’s so-called “green industrial revolution”. Houchen is a strong advocate for hydrogen production and carbon capture and storage technology, and in this episode he criticises recent Whitehall policy that delayed any decision on whether to develop hydrogen as a fuel source until 2026. We hear why he is so critical of the strategic decision to back heat pumps and why he calls for a “technology agnostic” approach to net zero research and development. We also hear from Maria Smith, who is director of sustainability and physics at Buro Happold and has been involved in the Built Environment Declares recent survey of the sectors attitudes to radical net zero policies. Simon Wyatt, partner at Cundall, provides our regular jargon buster session, this time explaining the term carbon sequestration, the process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide which is most commonly associated with trees growing and then turning those trees into timber. But how do we get the maximum benefit and how should carbon accounting work? To get in touch with the show go to: Twitter: @BuildingNews, Email: [email protected]. We'd love to know how you are working towards net zero on your project. For more news and analysis go to www.building.co.uk. Hosted by Building’s editor Chloe McCulloch with Elizabeth Hopkirk, assistant editor at Building Design. Audio production by Tariq Aziz.