Quiz 8: Mining & Fossil Fuel Sources

Question 1

__________________ consists of digging tunnels or shafts into the Earth to reach buried ore deposits

Answer 1

subsurface mining

Question 2

_______________ involves removing the dirt and rock that overlays a mineral deposit close to the surface in order to access that deposit

Answer 2

Surface strip mining

Question 3

What is the root cause of acid mine drainage?

Answer 3

the exposure of sulfide-bearing minerals to air and water

Question 4

Coal is a solid fossil fuel formed when plant material is buried in _______________ conditions and subjected to _________________ over a long time

Answer 4

oxygen-poor; high heat and pressure

Question 5

What form of coal has the highest energy content?

Answer 5

anthracite

Question 6

How does the use of coal cause acid precipitation?

Answer 6

The burning of coal emits gases like sulfur dioxide, which can combine with water to form acids.

Question 7

Peat, the precursor to coal formation, is typically formed in areas ____________.

Answer 7

with low rates of decomposition

Question 8

In Ireland, peat is often burned as a source of fuel. Peat is known to turn into which of the following fossil fuels?

Answer 8

coal

Question 9

Environmentalists are especially concerned about the amount of carbon dioxide released from burning coal because it

Answer 9

is a significant greenhouse gas

Question 10

environmental drawbacks to the mining of coal

Answer 10

• the burial and damage to streams caused by the dumping of overburden
• soil compaction causing increased storm water runoff and flooding
• the damage to forests caused by mountain top removal
  -water and soil contamination by acid drainage and leachates

Question 11

what is the hardest form of coal

Answer 11

anthracite

Question 12

Petrochemicals create the raw materials used to produce what

Answer 12

-soaps
-plastics
-medicines
-pesticides

Question 13

Which of the following statements about oil sands is not true?

-Oil sands can be mined and processed to produce a substitute for petroleum.
-Oil sands in Canada trap a large reservoir of bitumen.
-Oil sands mining is more efficient than harvesting conventional sources of oil.
-Oil sands trap heavy, black oil called bitumen.

Answer 13

Oil sands mining is more efficient than harvesting conventional sources of oil

Question 14

give an example of something that is NOT a product of crude oil

Answer 14

natural gas

Question 15

Natural gas is seen as a bridge fuel to transition from oil to more sustainable options because it

Answer 15

has a lower carbon footprint than other fossil fuels.

Question 16

Natural gas is composed mainly of

Answer 16

methane

Question 17

Reliance on the continued use of fossil fuels is not sustainable because fossil fuels are

Answer 17

not renewable and contribute to environmental destruction and climate change

Question 18

In deciding whether to extract oil from a site and how much of the total to extract, an oil company considers

Answer 18

the distance the oil must be transported, current market price of oil, potential environmental damage

Question 19

what environmental costs are directly related to oil and natural gas mining?

Answer 19

-oil pollution
-destruction due to explosions
-climate change
-habitat loss

Question 20

The Energy Return on Energy Investment (EROEI) must be ____________ for any fuel to be worth harvesting.

Answer 20

positive

Question 21

natural gas is often associated with

Answer 21

coal and petroleum

Question 22

The greatest environmental impact of burning fossil fuels is

Answer 22

the increase in greenhouse gases

Question 23

The entire pool of oil is not extracted from a well because

Answer 23

it is not cost‑effective

Question 24

What is the definition of “unconventional oil reserves”?

Answer 24

They are recoverable oil deposits that are found in rock, sand, or clay where extraction is expensive and environmentally costly.

Question 25

During fracking, what is extracted from deep unconventional reserves?

Answer 25

natural gas

Question 26

Fracking is a method to extract both ___________ from deep unconventional reserves.

Answer 26

oil and natural gas

Question 27

How is fracking different from conventional oil wells?

Answer 27

Fracking uses cracks created in the rock to release oil or natural gas

Question 28

When assessing energy resources, it is helpful to use a measure called EROEI, which is

Answer 28

energy returned divided by energy invested

Question 29

___________________ energy is replenished over short time scales or is perpetually available

Answer 29

renewable