Consuming Resources Flashcards
What is a Non- renewable resource?
There is a limited amount of the stock and once it is used up there will be none left
What is a renewable resource?
There is an infinite supply of the stock and it will never run out
What is a sustainable resource?
These resources can be used and replaced if managed carefully
How has oil production changed from 1970 to 2030
Has increased greatly, Middle East continues produce most oil South America produces least oil but increased slightly?
Why do some regions produce more oil than others?
It depends on how much oil reserves a country has.
How much money and technology the country not all countries can afford to develop oil wells
Political decisions to protect areas from oil drilling
How has oil consumption changed between 1970-2030?
Africa will have the largest increase in oil consumption but will still consume the least amount of oil. Europe will have a small decrease in oil consumption but will still consume 2 bs most oil
What was Malthus’ theory?
As population would grow we would not have enough resources and end up in crisis and famine
What was Boserups theory?
That as our population increases we will invent other methods to avoid crisis and he was right
How can we reduce resource demand?
Government provide information on recycling on recyclenow.com
Government include sustainability recycling and environmental issues as part of the syllabus
Introduced variable car tax encourage people to buy smaller more efficient cars
Set targets for recycling
What is sustainable development?
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Explain an alternative to using fossil fuels to power motor vehicles
Hydrogen could be used as a fuel to replace petrol and diesel
What is an advantage of using hydrogen to replace petrol.
It won’t release any green house gases only water vapour
What are disadvantages of using hydrogen to replace petrol and diesel.
Hydrogen is very explosive so it’s dangerous to store and is expensive
What are other methods of food production that don’t use fossil fuels
Biofuels are renewable alternatives to petrol and diesel?
What is bad about using a biofuel for food resources?
Biofuel crops use land that once grew food.
So increasing biofuels use could reduce food supply and food prices may increase
What can be done about resource wast?
Bottle water could be banned
People could be encouraged to compost food waste
What can we do about food supply that is under pressure?
GM crops could be developed that are flood tolerant and resistant to disease
What are disadvantages of GM crops?
The public in uk are uncomfortable as it’s seen as meddling with nature
Name the types of resources eg Physical
Biological
Energy
Mineral
Physical
Give 3 examples of a Mineral resource
Iron ore
Bauxite
Uranium
Give 3 examples of a Biological resource
Timber
Maize
Soya bean
Give 3 examples of an Energy resource
Coal
Oil
Gas
Give 3 examples of a Physical resource
Wind
Water
Sunlight
What are the benefits of the usage of Tar-Sand oil (non-renewable)
Makes profit for the major oil companies
tax benefits for countries with Tar sands
dependence on the dangerous middle eastern regions would be reduced
continued production of oil would avoid the cost of switching to other fuels
What are the costs of the usage of Tar-Sand oil (non-renewable)
Since it is a heavy oh it’s produces up to 3 times more Carbon dioxide then light oils
The extraction of tar oil uses a lot of water up to 6 barrels for one barrel of oil
Forests will need to be removed to scrape away the oil rich sands and groundwater and rivers will be polluted
300 billion barrels is about five years supply it just delays the need to look for alternative methods
What are the benefits of the usage of Solar energy (renewable)
Solar energy is unlimited
it is environmentally friendly with minimal carbon emissions after the production of panels
new thin panels are being divided that will be a lot more efficient than current technology
What are the costs of the usage of Solar energy (renewable)
It isn’t a steady (intermittent) resource so backup systems and new ways of storing electricity are needed
current production is tiny
it is relatively expensive
present panels last about 20 years
huge areas of panels are needed to produce significant amounts of energy
Why are there global inequalities in the amount of resources consumed
Size of population and economic development determine the amount of resources being consumed
Why can’t non renewable resources be produced in all countries
Not all countries have oil reserves as they don’t have oil bearing countries
Not all countries have the money and technology to develop wells it can cost 200 dollars to drill a well
Political decision to protect areas from oil drilling eg USA’s Artic National Wildlife Refuge
Why is oil consumption likely to increase in the future
Growing population means a need for more resources and higher demand
What is the evidence for Malthus being right? (Population would exceed resources so there’d be crisis)
There have been famines such as in Ethiopia 1984-85 and North Korea 1994-1998, however these only affected small areas
Nevertheless, there are 850 million malnourished people on the planet
There may not be enough resources for the expected 9.3 billion in 2050
Problems like soil erosion and desertification can reduce food production
What is the evidence for Malthus being wrong
when Malthus developed his theory in 1800 the global population has grown from 1 billion to 7 billion
What is the evidence for Boserup’s theory being right? (That as population grows we will use technology and other ways to produce resources )
The population has risen from 1 billion to 7 billion since 1800 proving we can find enough resources to provide for these people
Farm machinery was introduced in the late 19th century along with artificial fertilisers
After WW2 pesticides and herbicides were developed to increase cropsby killing pests and weeds
Since the 1900s the ‘gene revolution’ has developed new genetically modified (GM) crops to resist disease and drought
State ways in which local governments attempt to manage resource consumption (in terms of conservation and recycling)
Conservation- The local government provide and manage green spaces including: parks ,green belts, local nature reserves.
Recycling- The local government manage household waste by providing home recycling
State ways in which national governments attempt to manage resource consumption (in terms of conservation, education and recycling)
Education-The UK national curriculum includes sustainablity and environmental issues as part of geography and science
Recycle Now is the uk’s national campaign to educate people about the need to recycle and advises them
Conservation-Introduced variable car tax to encourage people to buy smaller more efficient cars
Phasing out incandescent light bulbs to encourage people to buy energy efficient bulbs
Set a target that 15% of electricity generation should be renewable by 2020
Recycling- Sets targets for recycling. Recycling of household waste has increased from 11% in 2001 to 40% in 2012
Define sustainable development
Development that meets needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations to make their own needs.
What fuels can be used to replace finite fossil fuels
Hydrogen could replace diesel and oil
Maize and other crops can be made into biodiesel as a renewable alternative to petrol and diesel
What are the benefits of using hydrogen as a fuel?
When it’s burnt it releases water vapour and not carbon dioxide, so it doesn’t cause pollution. There are no dangers of oil spills
There would no longer be dependence on the oil state
What are the costs of using hydrogen as a fuel?
Very expensive to make
It needs a lot of electricity to obtain hydrogen and this electricity may have to be gained from burning fossil fuels
Hydrogen is a very explosive gas so it is hard to store
How can modern ideas be used to compact food shortages?
GM Crops could be developed that are drought or flood tolerant so we have higher yields
Unfortunately, the public are uncomfortable with GM crops as it is seen as ‘meddling with nature’
Drip irrigation is a method used by farmers that use less water
Farmers would need to invest in expensive new equipment
Would have to change how they run the farm which takes time
