Infrastructure conversations
creating change
The Infrastructure Podcast is powered by Antony Oliver Consulting
A series of conversations with some of the key leaders and influencers from across the UK infrastructure sector, produced and hosted by journalist and commentator Antony Oliver.
Latest episode
The Infrastructure Podcast: Episode 108
Guest: Lee Pitcher, MP for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Water
Sponge cities to tackle urban flooding
Today's podcast is another special episode recorded live in front of an audience for the second of the latest Twin Talks interview series hosted by Bentley Systems.
As with the first TwinTalk event with construction minister Sarah Jones MP, today’s episode heads to Parliament for a conversation with Lee Pitcher, MP for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme, chair of the all Party Parliamentary Group on Water, and, up until the General Election in July, an engineering consultant with decades of experience in the water sector.
Today’s episode focuses on the creation of so-called Sponge Cities and specifically gets Lee’s thoughts on the findings of a new White Paper produced by Bentley Systems and water consultancy Aqua Consultants. This paper presents a rake of new thinking to tackle the growing and urgent problem of urban, pluvial flooding caused as our drainage systems become overwhelmed by increasingly intense rainfall and more frequent extreme weather events.
As we see on the news every year, flooding is not a new problem. But unlike river flooding, pluvial floods can strike anywhere, causing significant damage to homes, businesses, and infrastructure.
And as the new Creating Sponge Cities to Tackle Surface Water Flooding white paper points out, urbanisation, outdated drainage systems, and climate change are compounding the issue
But solutions are at hand in the form of Sponge Cities – embracing sustainable drainage systems (SuDS), green infrastructure solutions and a range of new strategies to create cities designed to absorb, store, and manage water more effectively.
But of course, despite the obvious economic and social costs of inaction, we still seem to be struggle to embrace change. The question is why. How can we influence and shape the policy landscape, and embrace the collaborative role of planners, engineers, policymakers, and industry leaders to shaping the future of sustainable water management?
Lee is a great person to ask – so I started by finding out why another report might help prompt the required change?
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Antony Oliver Consulting
Editorial consultancy services for the infrastructure sector
Antony works with a range of clients across the infrastructure sector, helping to boost their communication and marketing strategies and delivery so as to stimulate discussion and action in the industry.
This work includes:
- editorial support and creation
- event organisation, preparation and delivery
- round table discussion hosting and workshop/team facilitation
- video and podcasting
He has spent the last 30 years working as a journalist and editor across the infrastructure sector. Having joined New Civil Engineer magazine in 1994, he edited the title for 14 years until 2013, expanding NCE from a traditional paper magazine to deliver live events and conferences and then embrace the expanding world of multi-media digital delivery.
In 2014 he left NCE to create and launch Infrastructure Intelligence, a new digital-first publication for the sector, and for two years led and developed this ground-breaking media brand for the Association for Engineering and Consultancy.
He is a chartered civil engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, having started his career with Owen Williams and Partners and Balfour Beatty. He is committed to driving change across the UK infrastructure sector and is a Trustee of the Built Environment Trust and a Director of the Building Centre in Store Street, London.
antony@antonyoliver.com
The next episode of The Infrastructure Podcast will be published on Monday 7th April 2025.
