1. Advantages and Disadvantages of Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

2. Solar Energy (Renewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
Endless Supply
No air/water pollution
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Needs back up
Sun must be shining
Expensive to start up

3. Hydropower (Renewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
Unlimited supply
Easily stored
Fairly inexpensive
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Most good sites already developed
Requires a water supply
Disrupts the environment

4. Geothermal Energy (Renewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
Clean and safe
Low cost to run
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Hard to use
Could stop producing
Exploration is difficult to find a site

5. Wind Energy (Renewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
Unlimited supply
No pollution
Free source of energy
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Needs constant wind
Uses lots of land
Negative visual effects

6. Biomass (Renewable) Advantages (benefits) – Always available
Abundant source
Helps reduce landfill size and waste
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Habitat loss
Soil erosion
Air pollution

7. Coal (Nonrenewable) Advantages (benefits) –
Our most abundant fossil fuel!!!!
A low cost fuel
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Considered a dirty fuel
Air pollution/acid rain concerns
Possible negative visual effects on environment (strip mining)
Hazards of coal mining

8. Natural Gas (Nonrenewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
U.S. has an abundant supply!
Relatively inexpensive
Not much pollution
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Difficult to store and transport in gas form
Drilling and exploration is expensive and time consuming

9. Petroleum (Nonrenewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
Abundant source worldwide
Easy to use
Used to produce many products
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Air pollution
Must import about half of our supply
Price can change rapidly because of OPEC control

10. Nuclear (Nonrenewable)
Advantages (benefits) –
Doesn’t contribute to global warming (no CO2 emissions)
It is reliable (doesn’t depend on weather)
Doesn’t require as much space as other energy resources
Disadvantages (drawbacks) –
Difficult to dispose of waste
Nuclear accidents