Resources Unit
America and the World rely on numerous types of resources for our lives and well-being.
Resources SOLs
6.9
The student will investigate and understand public policy decisions relating to the environment.
Key concepts include
a)
management of renewable resources (water, air, soil, plant life, animal life);
b)
management of nonrenewable resources (coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear power, mineral
resources);
c)
the mitigation of land-use and environmental hazards through preventive measures; and
d)
cost/benefit tradeoffs in conservation policies.
6.6
The student will investigate and understand the properties of air and the structure and
dynamics of the Earth’s atmosphere. Key concepts include:
d) natural and human-caused changes to the atmosphere;
g)
the importance of protecting and maintaining air quality.
6.2
The student will investigate and understand basic sources of energy, their origins,
transformations, and uses. Key concepts include
b)
the role of the sun in the formation of most energy sources on Earth;
c)
nonrenewable energy sources (fossil fuels including petroleum, natural gas, and coal);
d)
renewable energy sources (wood, wind, hydro, geothermal, tidal, and solar)
Resources
: something that a country has and can use to increase its wealth
: a supply of something (such as money) that someone has and can use when it is needed
: a place or thing that provides something useful
http://www.merriam-webster.com/
http://www.energy.vt.edu/vept/index.asp sources of
VA data
http://www.thegwpf.com/ interesting site about
energy issues
Some of the most easily thought of resources in our
lives might be: safe, available water; same of soil/land;
same food; safe/clean air; energy such as oil, natural gas, coal,
wind, geothermal, nuclear, tidal, solar.
Vintage ad for garbage disposal
1872 New York City stops dumping its garbage
from a platform built out over the East River.
http://www.astc.org/exhibitions/rotten/timeline.htm Garbage timeline
New York City and garbage
Executive Summary
New York City generates approximately 13,000 tons of residential garbage daily. Current
disposal methods present economic, environmental, political, and social difficulties. This
report presents a new Solid Waste Alternative Technologies Program for New York City that
will address these problems.
Current policies discourage landfills and incinerators within New York City boundaries.
Since 2001, the City has exported its garbage to locations as far away as Virginia and Ohio.
Exportation leaves the City vulnerable to increasing costs because both transportation
companies and disposal facilities are privately owned. The system is politically dangerous
because other states are increasingly unwilling to accept the City’s garbage and are
seeking legal means of excluding outside garbage. Additionally, both landfilling and
incineration pollute the air and groundwater. Finally, emissions from trucks used in
transportation are detrimental to human health and the environment.
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/mpaenvironment/pages/projects/Final%20SWAT%20Report.pdf
The cost of dumping garbage in the Northeast has increased from $12.66 per ton
in 1985 to $69.07 in 2002; the highest tipping fees in the U.S. In 2002, the MidAtlantic Region, including Pennsylvania and Virginia, had the nation’s second
highest tipping fees at $45.26 per ton, more than doubling since 1985.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nPG6mqM0Bg&saf
ety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1 Mexico City’s
waste problem
http://washington.cbslocal.com/2015/04/22/more-than9000-gallons-of-fuel-to-be-used-on-air-force-one-forobamas-trip-to-everglades-on-earth-day/ Our presidents
like photo opportunites.
http://www.edmunds.com/about/press/hybrid-andelectric-vehicles-struggle-to-maintain-owner-loyalty-
reports-edmundscom.html people are trading in their
electric and hybrid cars for SUVs
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article3052926/Our-climate-models-WRONG-Global-warmingslowed-recent-changes-natural-variability-saysstudy.html time will tell regarding global warming
California has an extreme drought
as of Spring 2015. Lack of rain and
Winter snows in the mountains
means water usage regulations have
begun. Large fines or water cut-offs
will be applied to all violaters. Darker
colors indicate worse drought
problem.
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Home/StateDroughtMonito
r.aspx?CA
About 37 million people who live in
California strain the limited water
supply in a largely desert area. This
problem may continue, possibly forever
with population growth there.
Making Electricity
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20Vb6hlLQSg
5:18 cartoon showing how electricity is made and
comes to your house
RENEWABLE versus NONRENEWABLE
RESOURCES
Renewable resources are resources that can
be replaced soon after they are used.
Examples would be: solar, wind,
hydropower, biomass and geothermal.
Note: the water reference in the above
illustration does not show tidal power and
hydropower separately.
Tidal Power
http://technologystudent.com/images5/tidal1.gif
Tides occur every day and are generally observed at the ocean. Water comes in
(or rises) as tide change every 12 hours approximately. We experience the
opposite low tide just as often, half way between high tides. This flow of water is
endless and dependable. Some locations experience massive changes or
movements of water while other locations see much less change.
Tidal energy is produced through the use of tidal energy generators. These large
underwater turbines are placed in areas with high tidal movements, and are
designed to capture the kinetic motion of the ebbing and surging of ocean tides in
order to produce electricity. Tidal power has great potential for future power and
electricity generation because of the massive size of the oceans. These articles
explore the potential energy of tidal power technologies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lWTQd
HEazg
2:38 wind turbine tour
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNXTm7
aHvWc 9:38 computer animated
description/tour of wind turbine
Nonrenewable resources are natural resources
that cannot be replaced soon after they are
used.
About 92% of the energy consumed in the
United States comes from non-renewable
energy sources, which include uranium ore and
the fossil fuels — coal, natural gas, and
petroleum.




Oil (petroleum)
Natural Gas
Coal
Uranium (nuclear)
Renewable
Renewable energy sources including biomass,
hydropower, geothermal, wind, and solar
provide 8% of the energy used in the United
States. Most renewable energy goes to
producing electricity.





Biomass
Geothermal
Hydropower
Solar
Wind
http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=2
The world is running running out of some of
our Nonrenewable Resources.
http://groupsites.ius.edu/physics/e/reserves.html
U.S. Total Energy Statistics
Data for 2009 except where noted
Total Primary Energy Production

Coal

Gas

Oil

Nuclear

Renewable
Total Consumption
73.0 quadrillion Btu
30%
29%
19%
11%
11%
94.6 quadrillion Btu
by source

Oil

Gas

Coal

Nuclear

Renewable
by end-use

Residential & Commercial

Transportation

Industrial
Energy Consumption-Related Carbon Dioxide
Emissions (2008)

Residential & Commercial

Transportation

Industrial
37%
25%
21%
9%
8%
41%
29%
30%
5.405 million metric tons of carbon
dioxide
40%
34%
26%
Energy Consumption/GDP Ratio

2009

1979
Number of Households (2005)
7.35 thousand Btu per 2005 dollar
14.09 thousand Btu per 2005 dollar
111 million
Heated by: (2005)

Natural Gas

Electricity

Oil

Propane

Wood

Other
52%
32%
9%
6%
1%
1%
http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=stats
More Statistics for Each Energy Source







Oil Statistics
Natural Gas Statistics
Coal Statistics
Nuclear Statistics
Electricity Statistics
Biofuel Statistics
Other Renewable Energy Statistics
World Energy Statistics
Data for 2007 except where noted
Primary Energy Production

Oil

Coal

Gas

Hydro

Nuclear

Other
World Energy Consumption

United States

China

Russia

Japan

India

Germany
475 quadrillion Btu
35%
28%
23%
6%
6%
2%
484 quadrillion Btu
21%
16%
6%
5%
4%
3%
Per Capita Consumption (selected countries)
1. United States
2. Russia
3. Germany
4. Japan
337 million Btu
215 million Btu
172 million Btu
176 million Btu
56 million Btu
5. China
Energy-Related Carbon Dioxide Emissions

United States

Europe

China

Russia

Japan

India
29,914 million metric tons of carbon
dioxide
20%
16%
21%
6%
4%
4%
FRACKING TO GET NATURAL GAS
http://wilderness.org/files/imagecache/225/profiler/Fracking-diagram.gif
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQBfpX9PDag&feature=related&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1
Wind power is renewable and clean
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJJ3m3JCfJ8&feature=related&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1
Geothermal
Energy Resources
http://www.eia.gov/consumption/residential/reports/2009/state_briefs/ state by
state fact sheets on energy use
http://www.rcs.k12.va.us/csjh/sieber/SixthGradeFirstSemesterRevi.htm online
6th grade energy review quiz, Roanoke VA
1. Biomass/biofuel
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~dama0023/biofuels.html brief pro and con
http://energyinformative.org/biomass-energy-pros-and-cons/
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZoPNJGi6ig 1:30
video
2. Coal
http://debate.yukozimo.com/pros-and-cons-of-coal-energy/
http://www.prosandconsof.net/what-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-coal-power/
3. Geothermal
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/category/geothermal-energy good list of facts and
pros and cons
***http://geothermalprosandcons.net/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kjpp2MQffnw 5min California
geothermal. NICE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rs6n0baLQ6w geothermal explained 10 min
4. Hydropower
http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/hydropower-profile/
http://water.usgs.gov/edu/wuhy.html
http://www.altenergy.org/renewables/hydroelectric.html various pro-renewable energy
sources discussed here
**http://www.technologystudent.com/energy1/hydr2.htm good pro and con discussion
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/energy/hydropower.html simple list of hydro facts
http://energy.gov/eere/water/history-hydropower government site, provides overview, not pro
and con discussion
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/Disadvantages_HydroPower.php Note: disadvantage
discussion
5. Natural Gas
http://www.triplepundit.com/special/natural-gas-pros-cons/
6. Nuclear
http://www.nirs.org/neconomics/neconomicshome.htm very anti-nuclear site
http://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/02/nuclear-energy-advantages-vsdisadvantages/ pros and cons list
http://www.cyberphysics.co.uk/topics/nuclear/advantages_disadvantages_nuclear_power.htm
simple pro and con
***http://energyinformative.org/nuclear-energy-pros-and-cons/ nice pro and con
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcOFV4y5z8c Very good
7. Oil
http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=9991 kind of pro oil
http://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=oil_home general info. Not so much pro
vs con
http://www.eia.gov/countries/ good source of international production and consumption data,
as well as updates of same
8. Solar
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/pros-and-cons-of-solar-energy.php good pros and
cons
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/category/solar-energy list of facts and pros and cons
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gta2ICarDw 5:15
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0InAuhAre4 2:18
9. Tidal
http://www.triplepundit.com/special/tidal-power-pros-cons/
http://inventors.about.com/od/tstartinventions/a/tidal_power.htm
***http://www.renewablegreenenergypower.com/tidal-energy-tidal-power-pros-and-cons/
http://energyinformative.org/wave-energy-pros-and-cons/
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfXtfW8nxLE 2:32
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCVZfJKTGPo 7:24
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-sFLGMSMac 5:24
10. Wind
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/category/wind-energy click on pros and cons OR list of
facts
***http://energyinformative.org/wind-energy-pros-and-cons/
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLXZkn2W-lk 2:17
Figure 1. Electrical power generation in Virginia, 2005. Total = 78,943,045 megawatt-hours
Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration.
VA data
http://www.energy.vt.edu/vept/energyover/overdiagram.asp 2015 Virginia
VA data
http://www.energy.vt.edu/vept/energyover/PrimaryProd.asp 2015
Unclear of date of this chart nor what is depicting except the Roanoke teacher said it is U.S. as a whole.
http://www.rcs.k12.va.us/csjh/sieber/SixthGradeFirstSemesterRevi.htm
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/11/18/make-29-on-your-money-guaranteed/ 2011 data
Figure 1. The source of energy of electrical generation. Data projection as reported in Energy
Information Administration report: DOE/EIA-0484(2009).
Source: Energy Information Administration (EIA), Monthly Energy Review, May 2014, Table 7.2a, 2014.
http://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/#electricity.
Country 2015
Population Million
U.S.
India
Switzerland
Burkina Faso
China
Saudi Arabia
320
1,325
6
17
1,357
29
Gross
GDP(billion$)
17,419
2,048
685
11
9,240
750
Per Capita GDP
(approx. $)
$53,000
$1,500
$85,000
$685
$6,807
$24,407
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries
_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Development_Index#2015_report