The North East of England is famous for its history of coal mining – entire livelihoods were built on powering the country on coal before they were closed at the end of the last century.

But now, the disused coal mines could play a role in powering the future, while doing no harm to the climate.

On this week’s ClimateCast Tom Heap is in Gateshead where they’re using mining infrastructure to heat up water as an energy supply for the future. He visits Beamish Living Museum to speak to the Coal Mining Authority about the how it works and its future potential as an energy source.

Plus, he finds out what difference it could make to energy bills.