Paper 3 : Consuming Energy Resources Flashcards
What are the three types of energy?
Non - renewable
Renewable
Recyclable
What is non renewable energy?
Can’t be remade
Being used up
Once gone they are gone
What is renewable energy?
These renew themselves and don’t need managing
What is recyclable energy?
Can be reused, so will last in the future
What is natural gas used for?
Natural gas is used for electricity production heating and cooking
Where does natural gas come from?
North Sea
Why does the UK depend on the EU for natural gas?
Uk is running out of gas
EU gets gas from Ukraine and Russia
When is it said for natural gas to peak and when will it run out?
By 2030 it will peak
After which supplies is likely to diminish
Name an example of a non renewable energy resource
Coal
Name a renewable energy resource
HEP - Hydroelectric power
Name a recyclable energy resource
Biofuel
How many wind turbines are there in California?
More than 16,000
What percent of total energy do wind turbines provide for California?
6.9%
Why are there still drawbacks to wind energy in California?
Because on still days in both winter and summer, other renewables would have to meet demand
How is biogas formed?
When organic matter such as wood chips and animal dung are fed into a pit which farms biogas plants and left to ferment
What is biogas used for?
Electricity generators
What has the Indian government encouraged for biogas plants?
Encouraged communities to install biogas plants to provide energy for rural villages
How many biogas plants are there in India?
2.5 million
What is the environmental damage caused by mining and drilling in the extraction of fossil fuels?
Water pollution Loss of animal habitat Deforestation Oil in ocean killing animals and plants Air pollution Landscape scarring
Name factors that affect access to resources
Technology Geology Accessibility Climate Landscape
Explain why technology affects access to resources
Some countries are not able to exploit their energy resources as technology is too expensive/unavailable
Developed countries can exploit more renewable energy supplies
Explain how geology affects access to resources
Fossil fuels are found in sedimentary rocks
Countries located on plate boundaries will be able to access geothermal energy
Explain how accessibility affects access to resources
An area might have large energy resources but be unable to access them
Explain how climate affects access to resources
Solar power requires large amounts of sunlight
Countries with sunnier climates e.g Spain can use it more effectively
Explain how landscape affects access to resources
Wind turbines are most effective in areas with a steady/reliable source of wind or coastal locations
HEP requires lots of water to work and steep -sided valleys
What are the reasons for the decline in the coal industry?
High cost Cheaper to import coal Declining demand Other energy sources GHG emissions
Explain why the global energy demand is unevenly distributed
Canada consumes lots of energy because they need access to lots of electrical and energy devices as the climate is colder, therefore they need lots of energy to provide heating
Central Africa however uses very little energy because it contains developing countries who have more primary industries which use little energy
China is a developed country which uses more energy because it is a main site of manufacturing therefore mor energy is needed
Name 4 reasons why oil consumption is growing
Industrialisation
Population growth
Growth of disposable income
Increase in car ownership
Why is industrialisation causing oil consumption to grow?
More factories set up means more oil is needed to power them
Why is population growth causing oil consumption to grow?
More people means more oil is needed
Why is growth of disposable income causing oil consumption to grow?
Economic growth causes increase in oil consumption
Why is an increase in car ownership causing oil consumption to grow?
More oil is needed to fuel transport
Name factors affecting the oil supply and prices
Distribution Diplomatic relations Recession Economic boom Conflict
Evaluate how oil supply and prices are affected by changing international relations and economic factors
Conflicts - 1970s there was a disruption in oil production in the Middle East due to conflict which lead to decrease in supply - increase in price
Economic booms - happen only in a period of economic growth, causing the demand for oil to increase and therefore prices increase
What are conventional oil reserves?
These are easily exploited e.g through drilling
Extracting oil from them is quick and cheap
What are unconventional oil reserves?
More expensive and time consuming e.g fracking
Extracting oil from them is harming the environment
What is the ESPO pipeline?
Eastern Siberian Pacific Pipeline system for exporting Russian crude oil to the Asia - Pacific markets
The pipeline is built and operated by Russian Pipeline company Transneft
What countries are involved with the ESPO pipeline?
Russia, Japan, China and Korea
Why are Russia, Japan, China and Korea involved in the ESPO pipeline?
China needs increasing amounts of energy to fuel its rapid economic growth
Explain why Japan is involved in the ESPO pipeline
Has almost no oil reserves but it is the world’s 3rd largest oil consuming country
In 2007, Japan imported 76% of its oil from the Middle East
ESPO could reduce Japan’s oil dependence on the Middle East by 15%
Japan wants to engage with Russia and increase its economic and political influence which declined in 1980s and 1990s
Explain why China is involved in the ESPO pipeline
Needs increasing amounts of energy to fuel its rapid economic growth
Main energy pathway for China’s existing oil supplies is vulnerable - 80% of Chinese oil imports currently pass straight through the strait of Malacca so China wants to widen its supply options
How does international relations affect changing oil prices?
Through conflict - in 2003, following more than a decade of intermittent conflicts involving Iraq, US and Allied forces invaded Iraq which had the 4th largest oil reserves - as a result of conflict this led to shortages of and an increase in prices. - shows how international relations affects global oil prices because previously conflict caused prices to increase
How do economic factors and accessibility affect changing oil prices?
Increasing oil prices through fracking - fracking is when water is blasted into rock fractures, producing a revolutionary impact for the oil industry - now made USA less reliant on imprinted oil due to vast shale deposits
Fracking is very expensive through unconventional oil reserves, increasing the oil prices
Why do low income countries often use a lot of biomass to generate electricity?
Because they may not have national grids of energy infrastructures, so all energy has to be produced locally
Why do oil prices change?
Demand - high demand causes prices to rise, and falling demand causes lower prices
Supply - supply affects the price - too much oil and the price falls, too little and it rises
What is OPEC?
OPED are countries that are members that restrict oil supplies to the world market to keep prices high, led by its founder member, Saudi Arabia
What is fracking?
Water is blasted into rock fractures under pesssure
Explain the steps of fracking
Wells are bored using directional drilling, a method that allows drilling in vertical and horizontal directions to depths of over 3000m
Large amounts of water, sand + chemicals are injected into the cracks in the shales
Sand flows into the cracks keeping them open so that the oil from the shale can flow up and out of the well
What are tar sands?
A mixture of sand, clay and water and bitumen
Bitumen is extracted from tar sands injecting hot steam underground
This heats the sand and makes the bitumen far less sticky so it can be pumped out
What is shale gas?
A natural gas that is trapped underground in shale rock
Fracking is used to extract the gas
Why is fracking used to extract shale gas?
It is impermeable which means any gas trapped inside cannot be reached or pumped out using conventional vertical drilling
What is the difference between conventional and unconventional extraction?
Conventional is easily done and extracting oil is quick and cheap
Unconventional is more expensive and time consuming - harms the environment more
How is shale gas extracted in New Zealand?
Fracking - there are 48 hydraulic fracking activities taking place across the region
Fracking is pumping water into a well at high pressure
How are tar sands extracted in Athabasca, Canada?
By large scale open pit mining
Bitumen is extracted from tar sands by injecting hot steam underground - this heats the sand and makes the bitumen less sticky so it can be pumped out
Name one positive and negative of tar sands and shale gas extraction
Positive - extraction allows us to have access to oil reserves
Negatives - it is expensive and time consuming
How does gas producing countries cause oil prices to fluctuate?
Conflict between Russia and Ukraine in 2008 caused by Russia increasing prices threatened gas supplies into Europe
How did the Iraq war cause oil prices to fluctuate?
Invasion of Iraq was an invasion of the country with the world’s 4th largest oil reserves
The conflict led to shortages of oil and increases of prices
How does oil producing countries cause oil prices to fluctuate?
National security problems reduced Nigeria?s production by 20%
Meanwhile Mexican oil companies cut production to protest against political interference
What are the economic and political factors that cause shortages in oil?
Oil producing countries
Gas producing countries
OPEC
