3 - Non-renewable resources

Question 1

what is a resource? e.g.

Answer 1

Stuff we use to live
e.g. food, water, medicine, energy (electrical, heat)

Question 2

What is a renewable resource? e.g.

Answer 2

Can be replenished over short periods of time
e.g. sunlight, wind, organic matter, soil, groundwater

Question 3

What is a non-renewable resource? e.g.

Answer 3

Can not be replenished or take a very long time to be replenished
e.g. fossil fuels, minerals, aquifer water

Question 4

Characteristics of non-renewable resources

Answer 4

• are present in finite quantity and do not regenerate after they are harvested and used
• as they are used, their remaining stocks in the environment become depleted
• non-renewable resources can never be used in a sustainable fashion, they can only be “mined”

Question 5

Three principles of sustainability

Answer 5

• solar energy
• chemical cycling
• biodiversity

Question 6

What is sustainability

Answer 6

the process of living within the limits of available physical, natural and social resources in ways that allow the living systems in which humans are embedded to thrive in perpetuity

Question 7

What are fossil fuels

Answer 7

Highly combustible substances formed from remains of organisms that accumulate over time in sediments

Question 8

Makeup of natural gas?

Answer 8

Mostly methane (CH4) with some additional volatile hydrocarbons

Question 9

What is volatile? What are hydrocarbons?

Answer 9

Volatile = can become gaseous easily, have high vapor pressure
Hydrocarbons = organic compounds involving H and C

Question 10

Two types of natural gas

Answer 10

Biogenic and thermogenic

Question 11

What is biogenic natural gas

Answer 11

• formed at “shallow” depths
• formed via anaerobic decomposition of organic material by bacteria (outcome of activity from decomposers)
• more easily accessible, faster to form

Question 12

What is thermogenic natural gas

Answer 12

• formed at deeper depths
• formed via compression and heating of organic materials

Question 13

What is fracking

Answer 13

Natural gas extraction method
Hydraulic fracturing

Pump a water, sand and chemical mixture into well. Pressure from it causes terrain to fracture until gas is released

Question 14

Pros and cons of fracking

Answer 14

Pros:
- get natural gas and other fuels that otherwise are locked up
- provides economic benefits to area (jobs, revenue source for community)

Cons:
- MASSIVE potential environmental implications (it can cause earthquakes, risk of groundwater contamination, risk of pond spills)
- loud and ugly

Question 15

Top producers, exporters and importers of natural gas

Answer 15

Producers = united states, russia

Exporters = russia, qatar

Importers = China, japan

Question 16

Example of a non-traditional natural gas source

Answer 16

Landfills: put organic waste into tanks, allow natural decomposition to occur, capture gas when released

Farms: cow manure collected and stored in large cement holding tank called digester. Manure sits at 101C for 21 days, methane rises to the top. Generator converts methane gas into electricity.

Question 17

Problems with thermogenic natural gas

Answer 17

• getting harder to extract
• fracking-based methods can be dangerous to the environment and human health
• we are running out

Question 18

What is coal

Answer 18

Organic material (with minimal decomposition) that has been so compressed it has become rock

Question 19

What is peat

Answer 19

Coal precursor:
- compressed soil with decomposed organic matter (mostly decayed plants)
- under high pressure and heat, it undergoes physical and chemical changes and becomes coal

Question 20

How was coal formed?

Answer 20

Plants that lived in swamps millions of years ago, accumulated after death in the soil/sediments
Over millions of years, the plant dead matter was buried under water and sediments (dirt)
Increasing heat and pressure as more sediments and rocks form above, turned the dead plants into coal.

Question 21

Slides 29, 30

Answer 21

Uses of coal (heat, electricity)

Question 22

Two methods of coal mining

Answer 22

• subsurface mining
• strip mining

Question 23

Top producers, exporters and importers of coal

Answer 23

Producers = China, India

Exporters = Indonesia, Australia

Importers = China, India

Question 24

Cons of subsurface and strip mining

Answer 24

Subsurface = very dangerous for workers

Strip mining = causes massive erosion and acid drainage (especially mountaintop removal)

Question 25

What is acid mine drainage

Answer 25

• outflow of acidic water from mines
• sulfuric acid is produced when material/rocks containing sulfide compounds are exposed to the elements
• can be caused by all types of mining (coal, bitumen, metals)

Question 26

Problems with burning coal

Answer 26

• smog
• produces highest amount of CO2 per unit heat produced

Question 27

What is ‘clean’ coal?

Answer 27

• use methods (refining steps) to reduce the amount of SO2 and NOx emissions
• additional methods increase the efficiency of the chemical reactions during combustion, equal to more heat per unit coal
• still produces massive amounts of CO2

Question 28

Canada as an oil producer

Answer 28

The 5th largest producer of oil globally and the 7th largest consumer

Question 29

Slides 44-49

Answer 29

Oil formation, extraction

Question 30

Problems with tailings ponds

Answer 30

• air pollution (greenhouse gasses)
• water pollution (crude leaks)
• soil pollution (leaching from landfills)

Question 31

Problems with burning oil?

Answer 31

Produces CO2, SOx, NOx, CO, CH4

Question 32

What is the Hubbert Peak Theory

Answer 32

Peak oil
- point of maximum global production of oil
- oil production will eventually decline until all oil is depleted
- should be right about now

Question 33

Top producers, exporters and importers of oil

Answer 33

Producers: US, Russia

Exporters: Saudi Arabia, Russia

Importers: China, India

Question 34

Metals as non-renewables? Canada ranks in the top five for producing what metals?

Answer 34

All metals on earth are in limited quantities

Nickel, Niobium, Aluminum, Platinum, Gold

Question 35

Problems with metal mining?

Answer 35

• erosion
• acid drainage
• toxic tailings
• loss of habitat and biodiversity

Question 36

What are nuclear fuels? How do they produce electricity?

Answer 36

Unstable isotopes of uranium and plutonium

Decay through fission into lighter elements, use the released heat energy to produce steam (and then electricity)

Question 37

In situ uranium recovery

Answer 37

Pump a chemical solution mixed with sodium bicarbonate, hydrogen peroxide, and oxygen into the layer of the earth containing uranium ore. The solution dissolves the uranium from the deposit in the ground and is then pumped back to the surface through recovery wells and sent to the processing plant to be processed into uranium yellowcake

Question 38

Top producers of nuclear electricity (uranium, plutonium)

Answer 38

United states and France

Question 39

Slide 74

Answer 39

Phosphorous cycle

Question 40

Fossil fuels? Raw materials?

Answer 40

Fossil fuels = gas, coal, oil

Raw materials = metals, diamonds and gemstones, nuclear fuels, phosphorus

Question 41

Problems with mining P

Answer 41

Phosphate is mined as ore but also for use in inorganic fertilizers, animal feed supplements, and pesticides

Associated risks with phosphate rock mining:
- air pollution
- water contamination
- wildlife habitat destruction

Question 42

The BIG problem with non-renewable resources

Answer 42

All mining is unsustainable

Question 43

Solutions to fossil fuel use

Answer 43

Only sustainable energy source is renewable energy:
- wind
- hydro
- solar

Question 44

Solutions to metals and gems

Answer 44

Reduce, reuse and recycle

Question 45

Solutions to phosphorus use

Answer 45

Reduce the amount that is used:
- stop using excess fertilizer
- increase erosion controls