Safe Net Zero

The UK has set a world-leading net zero target to address the inter-generational challenge of climate change: we were the first major economy to take decisive action and make it a legal obligation to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 - 2045 for Scotland.

Positive action towards these targets is set out in the Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution, the BEIS Energy White Paper, the Scottish Government's Hydrogen Policy Statement and the National Infrastructure Strategy, which all make it clear that we will need both a diverse mix of low carbon energy technologies, plus a rapid acceleration of their development and deployment, in order to meet our targets.

From a health and safety perspective, the scale and speed of the changes required means we must pay even greater attention to keeping consumers and industry safe from new risks, not forgetting those that existed before.

Proactively 'designing-in' safety as part of the core technological development is imperative if we are to get it right first time and introduce the energy technologies and regulatory frameworks of the future 'better, greener and faster'.

HSE's Safe Net Zero solutions integrate health and safety into the development and deployment of the new and novel technologies underpinning the UK's decarbonisation activities.

We combine our regulatory insight, our world class science and engineering capabilities and our experience, learned from over a century of accident analysis, process safety development and major accident hazard and risk management as part of Great Britain's health and safety regulator, and apply it to the deployment of new technology, or novel use of existing technology, with the aim of making the transition to net zero as safe as possible, as fast as possible.

Technologies we are assisting:

Advancing offshore wind

Delivering low carbon hydrogen

New and advanced nuclear power

Enabling lithium ion battery technology

Zero emission vehicles

Jet zero and green ships

Contact us for help with new energy technologies

If your business is based in the energy sector and you'd like to benefit from HSE's expertise to design in health and safety for new and innovative energy technologies, please contact:

Dr Stuart Hawksworth on +44 (0)203 028 2212 or email stuart.hawksworth@hse.gov.uk

Connect with Stuart on LinkedIn

Keep in touch with us

Read our latest Safe Net Zero eBulletin

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