GEOGRAPHY ___ Unit 3: Managing Canada’s Resources and Industries Canada’s Economic Geography Types of economic resources include: natural (minerals, fuel, water, etc.), capital/money, labour (human energy and effort) and technology (all non-natural resources). An economic sector is defined by the business type activity it supports. Together they form the chain of production. ● ● Primary / Raw Material Sector ○ Alters natural resources into primary products for other industries. ○ Examples: extraction, mining, farms, minerals, fuels, forests, unprocessed, etc. Secondary / Manufacturing Sector ○ Processing and manufacturing, purifying, packing, etc. of raw goods. ■ Example: Consumer Goods Menu (automobiles, textiles, aerospace, energy utilities, breweries, bottlers, etc.). ● ■ Heavy Industry (metal smelting, petro-chem, ship building, etc.) ■ Construction (residential, roads, sewage, commercial, etc.) Tertiary / Services Sector ○ Service industry, provides public and private services. ○ Examples: banking, law, insurance, healthcare, education, social services, tourism, arts, retail, wholesale, real estate, etc. ● Quaternary / Information services Sector ○ Intellectual or knowledge based services. Only evolves in highly developed countries (tertiary + quaternary sectors employs over 75% of pop.). ○ Examples: research + dev, IT, space exploration, nanotech, consultation, pharma, financial planning, post secondary education, info. generation + sharing, etc. Conventional Energy Resources In Canada Resource Where and Value Purpose Advantages Disadvantages Coal Generates over $5 billion CAD annually. Mostly west coast (BC, AB, NB, SK). - electricity gen. - cement - smelting Competitive cost, provides cheap energy, etc. Releases GHG, new technology is expensive, impacts land + environment, etc. Also acid rain. Oil / Petroleum Found mostly in AB, SK, Newfoundland, etc. Roughly $20 billion - ish (2013?). - fuel (vehicles) - heating - electricity gen. - drying - cooking Cheap, abundant, easy to transport, etc. Emits GHG, non-renewable, can be expensive, oil spills, etc. Natural Gas Found all over Canada. - heating - cooking - electricity gen. Burns cleaner, cheaper, versatile, abundant, etc. Releases some GHG, flammable, toxic, inefficient transport, etc. Hydro Mostly in QB, ON, MT, and BC. - electricity gen. - heating Renewable, provides stable energy, no fuel costs (water is free), etc. Can damage fish habitat, destroys environment, expensive plants, relays on environment, etc. Nuclear Mostly in Ontario. - electricity gen. - heating Has almost no emissions, provides expansive energy production, etc. Nuclear waste, accidents, expensive, etc. Renewable Energy Resources In Canada Resource How? Advantages Disadvantages Wind Energy Wind flows through blades, they rotate and spin, powering rotor in a generator and producing electricity. - Renewable. - Effective. - Wind is free. - Little environmental effect. - Can look unappealing. - Take up space. - Can potentially be noisy. Hydro As water falls from top of hydro dam, it picks up speed that is used to turn the turbine and drive the generator of the power station (kinetic energy). - Renewable. - Water is free. - Basically no emissions. - Can disrupt aquatic habitats. - Relies on water systems. - Solar Thermal Panels absorb heat from sun, which then heats fluid. The steam collected then powers a generator that produces electricity. - Renewable, Sustainable. - Low maintenance. - Reduce elec. Bills. - Silent and can power remote areas. - Can be expensive @ first. - Requires sun + space. - Dirt, air pollution, etc. can affect effectiveness. Solar Photovoltaic When light energy strikes the solar cell, electrons are knocked loose from semiconductor material. If electrical conductors are attached to the positive and negative sides, forming an electrical circuit, electrical current can be captured. - Directly creates electricity. - Efficient and effective. - Renewable. - Silent - Low maintenance. - Sun is free. - Expensive technology. - Relies on sun conditions. - Dirt, air pollution, etc. can affect effectiveness. Biomass Fuel that is made from living things, e.g. wood waste Wood waste can be burned to produce heat energy which can be used in different ways to generate electrical energy. - Utilizes waste. - Relatively cheap. - Versatile. - Releases GHG when burned. - Potentially limited supply. - Relies on availability of biomass. Marine Typically, using different sorts of collectors, kinetic energy is captured from waves and tides. - Renewable. - Carries high energy. - Water is free and abundant. - Can disrupt marine life. - Disturbs habitats and beach. - Relies on water’s energy.
