Inside England’s first EVER air purifying Moss Tree

The planting of England’s first ever pollution-reducing moss tree in the middle of Newcastle city centre.

Using gigabytes of computer data, the latest computer programmes and the skills of IT experts from across the country to end all leakage from water pipes deep underground.

The ability to pay your water bills, change your account details and get advice on your account all by chatting with ‘Alexa’.

This isn’t the far off distant future for water customers. This is now. And it’s all as a result of Northumbrian Water Group’s first Innovation festival.

The Innovation Festival was held in July 2017 at Newcastle Racecourse and was the first of its kind that had ever been held by a water company.

It was the brainchild of NWG’s Information Services director Nigel Watson and the unique event was aimed at pushing boundaries, challenging the ‘business as usual’ approach to the industry and changing the world for the better.

So for five days in July thousands of people (including 140 local, national and international businesses) all got together to tackle a number of environmental, societal and industry issues.

There are currently 25 projects running that came out of the festival, here are some of the best bits…

England’s first EVER air purifying Moss Tree

A 13-foot-high Moss Tree is coming to save Newcastle city centre. The big green breathing ‘machine’ is one of the most exciting things to come out of the festival.

The Moss Tree idea has been developed in partnership with Ordnance Survey, Newcastle City Council and supplier Evergen and in March this year it will be placed in Newcastle’s bustling Haymarket, next to the city’s bus station.