1. Chapter 14: Resource Issues
The Cultural Landscape:
An Introduction to Human Geography

2. Energy Resources Non-renewable Energy Source Renewable Energy Sources
Coal, Oil, Natural Gas
Nuclear Power/Uranium
Renewable Energy Sources
Hydroelectric
Solar
Wind
Biomass Fuels

3. KI1:Why Are Resources Being Depleted?
Energy resources
Animate versus inanimate power
Energy supply and demand
5/6 of world’s energy comes from coal, natural gas, & oil
2 concerns of fossil fuels:
finite supply & uneven global distribution
Finiteness of natural resources
Renewable vs nonrenewable resources
Proven reserves vs Potential reserves
extraction, undiscovered fields, unconventional sources
2 Uneven distribution of fossil fuels
Location of reserves
Consumption of fossil fuels
3 Control of world petroleum
OPEC
Changing supply and demand
4 Nonrenewable substitutes for petroleum
Natural gas
Increased use due to : cheaper, less polluting, supplies not subject
to political disruptions BUT current rate of use =supplies for 60 years
Coal
Current rate of use leaves supplies for 200 more years
BUT pollutes, dangerous to extract, expensive to transport
Nuclear energy
1 Potential accidents – Chernobyl, Three Mile Island
2 Radioactive waste – remains lethal for years
3 Bomb material – fear to use in war would end all life
4 Limited uranium reserves –70 years current rate of use
5 High cost of nuclear power – cost billions of dollars to build due to security checks
Mineral resources
Not uniformly distributed around world
Nonmetallic minerals
Nonmetallic = 90 percent of extraction is for building stone
2 Metallic minerals
Ferrous metallic minerals = iron ore, chromium, manganese
Nonferrous metallic minerals = aluminum, copper, zinc
Precious metals = gold, silver, platinum
Animate = power supplied by people & animals
Inanimate = power generated by machines
Fossil fuel = residue of plants and animals buried millions of years ago

4. Energy Production

5. Per Capita Energy Consumption
U.S. Energy Consumption
Figure 14-1

6. Outlook for World Petroleum Production
Proven Reserves of Petroleum
Outlook for World Petroleum Production
Figure 14-3

7. Coal Production
Figure 14-4

8. Fossil Fuels: Where is the Natural Gas?

9. KI 2: Why Are Resources Being Polluted?
Air pollution
Pollution = when more waste is added than a resource can accommodate
1 Global scale
Global warming
Greenhouse effect
CFC’s break down Earth’s protective layer of ozone gas
2 Regional scale
Acid precipitation & acid deposition
3 Local scale
Carbon monoxide
Hydrocarbons and photochemical smog
Particulates (dust & smoke)
Water pollution
Typical USA resident uses 180 gallons per day
(drinking, cooking, bathing)
1 Water pollution sources
Agriculture
(fertilizers & pesticides from fields wash into rivers/lakes)
Water-using industries
(Industries like steel, chemicals, & food processing pollute water)
Municipal sewage
(MDC’s sewers carry waste water to treatment plants and then rivers/lakes)
2 Impact on aquatic life
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)
If too much waste is discharged into water, water becomes oxygen starved and fish die
3 Wastewater & Disease
LDC’s generate less wastewater, but they have less capacity to treat the wastewater
Land pollution
1 Solid waste disposal
Sanitary landfills
Two alternatives to landfills: incineration and recycling
2 Hazardous waste
Used to bury hazardous waste, but can leak
In 2007 = about 47 million tons of hazardous waste disposed of in the United States

10. KI 2: Why Are Resources Being Polluted?
Air pollution
Acid Deposition in
North America & Europe

11. KI 2: Why Are Resources Being Polluted?
Air pollution
Smog in Mexico City

12. The Global Warming Hypothesis
Human-induced rise in CO2 levels is theorized to lead to unnatural warming of atmosphere.
Likely effects:
Increased storminess
Rising sea level (.2-1 meter in 100 years – IPCC, 2001)
Loss of arable land (some areas hotter, others cooler)
Extinction of thousands of species
Loss of nearly all coral reef
Possible effects even include climate “flip-flop” wherein dangerous rapid cooling sets in!

13. The Greenhouse Effect
A normal climatic warming effect caused by permitting incoming solar radiation but inhibiting outgoing terrestrial radiation.
Three gases are the primary cause:
Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
Methane (CH4)
Water Vapor (H2O)
The effect is possible because outgoing earth radiation is of much longer wavelengths than incoming insolation.

14. Pollution Compared to a Country’s Wealth
Figure 14-34

15. KI 3: Why Are Resources Reusable?
Renewing Resources
About 6% of USA energy is generated by renewable sources
1 Leading Renewable Energy Sources
Biomass (wood & crops)
Negatives:
can be inefficient, loss of forests, needs to be used for other things such as clothing & shelter
b) Hydroelectric power (use water/dams to create electricity)
World’s 2nd most popular source of electricity after coal
Negatives: flooding of land, erosion, destruction of ecosystems
Wind power
Negatives: noisy, lethal for birds
Geothermal energy
Energy from hot water or steam in Earth’s interior surface
Nuclear Fusion
The fusing of hydrogen atoms to form helium releases energy
Can only occur at very high temperatures
2 Solar Energy
a) Passive solar energy
Capture energy without special devices
b) Active solar energy
Collect solar energy & convert it to either heat energy or to electricity
3 Uses for Renewable Energy
a) electricity
Use solar energy to heat water
Motor vehicles
attempts to decrease importance of gas as fuel in cars
Recycling Resources
In the United States recycling has steadily increased since 1970
1 Recycling Collection
Pick-up and processing
Recyclables are collected in four ways: curbside, drop-off, buy-back, and/or deposit
Manufacturing of recycled products
Other Pollution Reduction Strategies
Reducing discharges
Increasing environmental capacities

16. KI 3: Why Are Resources Reusable?
Electricity From Hydroelectric Power
Percentage of Electricity
Generated from Nuclear Power

17. Energy Production
Clean, renewable energy; China built the Three Gorges, the largest dam ever on the Yangtze River.

18. Initially expensive Interconnectivity and grid issues Huge Untapped Potential Federal and State Government incentives come and go.
Works profitably in very windy locations.
Large and unsightly.
Requires lots of land.
Works well in windy deserts where few people live. Texas has huge potential.

19. A Coking Plant: using all reduction strategies
Figure 14-32

20. KI 4: Why Can Resources Be Conserved?
Sustainable Development
Improving quality of life while preserving resources for future generations
Conservation
Sustainable use and management of resources
Preservation
Maintenance of resources in their present condition
Sustainability & Economic Growth
1987 Brundtland Report says sustainable development must recognize environmental protection, economic growth, & social equity are linked
Biodiversity
Biological & Geographic Biodiversity
Biologists = most concerned with genetic diversity
Geographers = most concerned with biogeographic diversity
Biodiversity in the Tropics
Occupy 6 percent of Earth’s land area but contain more than 50 percent of all species
Principal cause of extinction is deforestation

21. Sustainable Development
Figure 14-33