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Published bySilvester Norman Modified over 8 years ago
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Natural Resources
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Renewable Resources: are ones that can be replaced in nature at a rate close to their rate of use Oxygen Trees Food Sunlight
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Non-renewable Resources exist in a fixed amount or are used up much faster than they can be replaced Petroleum Coal Metals Natural gas salt Non metals Sand and gravel
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Supply vs. Demand US has many resources but also great demand Average US citizen uses 40,000 pounds of minerals every year! Experts estimate most of the US mineral resources will be gone in < 60 years
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Our Most Important Resource: Energy FOSSIL FUELS: Made from the remains of organisms (plants and animals) that lived millions of years ago NON renewable
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Earth at night as seen from space
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COAL Made from burial of plant remains in swamps from 300 million years ago Abundant and inexpensive Most of our electric power comes from burning coal The MOST polluting of all the fossil fuels Difficult (heavy) to transport
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COAL
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Petroleum & Natural Gas Formed from decay of shallow marine organisms trapped in ocean sediments 300 million years ago Expensive to pump out of ground Most remaining reserves are in Saudi Arabia/ Middle East Used as heating and transportation fuel
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Petroleum & Natural Gas
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Uranium (Nuclear Energy) Used in nuclear power plants to make inexpensive electricity Small amount needed: 1 g Uranium = 3 tons coal = 14 barrels oil Dangerous radioactive wastes Vulnerable to large scale accidents, natural disasters, terrorist attacks
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RENEWABLE ENERGY Hydroelectric
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Tidal Electric
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WIND
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Solar Energy
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GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
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Environmental Issues and the Use of Natural Resources Mining Destruction of surface and soil takes decades to recover
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Environmental Issues and the Use of Natural Resources Mining Mine drainage is toxic, poisons rivers and lakes and groundwater downstream
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Water pollution from coal mine
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Environmental Issues and the Use of Natural Resources Nuclear Power Radioactive waste make take hundreds of years to decay Accidents!
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Environmental Issues and the Use of Natural Resources Fossil Fuels Air Pollution (Smog) Acid Rain
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Global Warming Carbon Dioxide CO 2 is not a pollutant or a poisonous gas It is made when all types of fossil fuels are burned It traps heat in the atmosphere (the Greenhouse Effect) Man-made CO 2 is causing global warming
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Sources of Carbon Dioxide
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Results of Global Warming
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Global Temperatures since 1884
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Conservation:Energy Efficiency Electric cars High Mileage and Hybrid cars
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Use Renewable Energy Resources Solar Car
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RECYCLE and REUSE
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