Earth's sustainable future Flashcards
list 5 examples of kinds of ground water pollution from anthropogenic sources
poorly managed septic systems
faulty or abandoned wells
landfills
sewers and leaky pipes
mining activities
define what causes a cone of depression
water table is lowered from over pumping a well, causing a cone of depression
what can happen from a cone of depression?
salt water incursion
over pumping a well near the ocean means that salt water begins filling the well and aquifer.
salt water is denser than fresh water (fresh water sits on top not getting pumped) well fills with salt water. well is now unusable.
list 5 sources of renewable energy
wind power
solar power
geothermal power
hydropower
tide power
list 3 sources of nonrenewable energy
coal
oil
gas
define the term renewable resources
renewable resources are those which are avaliable regularly and are replenished within a millenia (1,000 years)
define the term non renewable resources
non renewable sources are those which are finite and take longer than a millenia to replenish (1,000 years)
site location factors for wind farms
average wind speeds of at least 21km/h
good access
flat
remote (noise pollution)
high altitude = fast winds
list 3 different kinds of wind farms
hill top plateau
coastal headland (sea breeze)
offshore (attached to sea bed). damages benthonic ecosystem
ground water doesn’t infiltrate it “……….”
perculates
pros and cons of solar power
pros
30+ year life span, therefore are relatively permanent.
solar energy is inexhaustible
people can save money on electricity bills by installing solar panels on their roofs, making it attractive to society, therefore cleaner energy sources becoming more popular.
cons
sun does not shine all of the time, therefore batteries must be used to store the energy collected. these are expensive and inefficient.
solar panels are expensive to construct and install,
once solar panels die they contribute to land fill (cannot be recycled)
pros and cons of wind power
pros
most materials can be recycled
does not release any emissions once it is up and running
cons
resource demanding to construct, manufacture and transport. all of which include the releasing of carbon emissions.
visual burdens
very noisy
each wind turbine puts out less energy than is required to manufacture one
pros and cons of nuclear power
!!!!!!!!!
site location factors for solar farm
amount of available sunlight
price of the land
accessibility of the land
flat location
low vegetation
not near water ways
define how geothermal energy is sourced
geothermal energy is sourced as hot water forms as steam near the surface and is piped under pressure and used to drive turbines which generate electricity.
pros and cons of geothermal energy
pros
very inexpensive method of producing electricity when maintained and set up efficiently
very minimal impact on the environment
cons
very few sites where geothermal energy can be extracted economically
define what a geothermal gradient is
geothermal gradient is the rise in temperature with increasing depth
define the two types of geothermal energy
‘wet’ geothermal energy (wet rocks)
‘dry’ geothermal energy (dry rocks)
describe ‘wet’ geothermal energy
Hot ground water us forced to the surface where it turns into steam, driving turbines, generating electricity.
describe ‘dry’ geothermal energy
injecting high pressure water down a borehole into the heat zone, water perculates through pores at a high speed, capturing the heat of the rocks, until it is forced out of a second borehole as very hot water.
upon reaching the surface, the hot water turns into steam which driving turbines, generating electricity.
what makes rock permeable?
being porous, pervious or both
define what an aquiclude is
an aquiclude is is impermeable to the flow of water. it contains a lot of water but it does not allow water to perculate through it
state the difference between an aquifer and an aquiclude
an aquiclude is a saturated rock formation, which is impermeable to the through flow of water.
an aquifer is a saturated and permeable rock formation, which allows water to flow through it
define the term infiltrate/infiltration
the through flow of water through soil
define the term perculate
the through flow of water through rock
define what an water table is
the water table is the layer between the surface and the saturated rock/soil below.
This rises and falls seasonally, and rises above surface level, creating rivers, ponds, etc.
define what a fault line is
a fault line is a break in the rock layers, water and oil can travel up the fault line
true or false
crystalline rocks are not permeable
true
why are rock layers not straight
rock layers bend and curve with the landscape (rise with mountains, fall with valleys)
why should building a power station on top of a fault line be avoided?
fault lines move, could result in collapsing nuclear power plant. BIG BAD.
