Name:____________________ Date:___________ Hr:___
Non Renewable Recources Worksheet
Read the information about Non- renewable recourses and answer the questions
that follow:
Nuclear power provides approximately 19 percent of the nation's electricity supply.
Nonrenewable resources are raw materials, which take long periods of time to form. Most energy
producing nonrenewable resources are fossil fuels, which take thousands to millions of years to form.
Fossil fuels develop when carbon, from decomposed plants and animals buried in soil, experiences
geologic pressure and heat. Over time, this carbon converted into the fossil fuels that we now use to
generate energy.
Natural Gas
The extraction of natural gas involves drilling underground and removing the gas with a pump.
Pipelines carry natural gas to power plants where the gas burns in a boiler or combustion turbine
to generate electricity. Burning natural gas produces air pollutants like nitrogen oxides and
carbon dioxide. In addition, small amounts of methane, mercury compounds and sulfur dioxide
emissions can occur from burning natural gas. Natural gas is a cleaner-burning fuel than coal and
produces less than half the amount of carbon dioxide that coal burning generates, according to
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Burning natural gas requires water for cooling
purposes. Using water from local rivers and lakes kills aquatic life and affects the local
ecosystem. (See References 2)
Oil
Drilling operations remove oil from underground reservoirs. Transported oil enters refineries,
which purify the oil by removing sulfur, metals and nitrogen. Further refining separates the oil
into propane, diesel fuel, jet fuel, kerosene and gasoline. Further transportation brings these
products to power plants, which generate electricity by burning the fuel in turbines. Generating
energy from oil produces potent greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides,
sulfur dioxide and methane. In addition, drilling engines, wells, collection equipment and
transportation units produce greenhouse gas emissions. Solid waste and wastewater sludge are
byproducts of oil refining that contain toxins and metals. Contaminated and heated water,
released from refineries, pollutes local streams and aquatic habitats. In addition, oil drilling can
contaminate groundwater and oil spills can radically damage ecosystems. (See References 3)
Coal
Coal extraction involves underground and surface mining. Both mining processes can result in
soil and water pollution. Soil contamination that occurs at mining sites lasts for many years.
Mountain top removal, a form of surface mining for coal, involves the use of large machines and
explosives to expose coal seams below the surface. Every step of the coal mining, cleaning and
transporting process generates air pollutants. The average emission rate of carbon dioxide
generated from burning coal for energy is 2,249 lbs. per megawatt hour, according to the EPA.
Burning coal also releases the potent greenhouse gas methane. Water contamination occurs at
mining sites and power plants, and pollutes nearby bodies of water. (See References 4)
Uranium
Nuclear power plants use uranium to generate electricity. Although uranium-containing rocks
exist across the world, there is no natural process that regenerates uranium at a sustainable rate.
For this reason, uranium is a nonrenewable resource. The nuclear fission process, which
generates energy from uranium, does not produce harmful greenhouse emissions. However,
uranium mining and refining relies on energy from fossil fuels. In addition, the building
materials and energy required to manufacture and run nuclear power plants generate air
pollutants. Each year, the U.S.'s nuclear energy plants produce 2,000 metric tons of radioactive
wastes. These wastes remain radioactive for thousands of years and require secure storage sites.
(See References 5)
Name:_____________________ Date:_____________ Hr:______
Non Renewable Recources Worksheet
1. What provides approx. 29% of the Nation’s electricity supply?______________________
2. Nonrenewable resources are ___________ materials.
3. How does natural gas generate
electricity?_______________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
4. Burning natural gas causes air pollutants such
as?_____________________________________________________________________
5. Natural gas is a _________- burning fuel than coal
6. How do refineries purify
oil?_____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
7. drilling engines, wells, collection equipment and transportation units
produce:________________________________________________________________
8. What else can drilling oil contaminate?________________________________________
9. What is the average emission rate of carbon dioxide generated from burning coal for
energy?_________________________________________________________________
10. What greenhouse gas does burning coal release?________________________________
11. Where does water contamination
occur?__________________________________________________________________
12. There is ____ natural process that regenerates uranium at a sustainable rate.