Unit 5 Part 1

Question 1

why does canada use a lot of electricity?

Answer 1

canada is a northern country with harsh climate, small population over large area, advanced industrial industries that require energy to be powered, and we waste it since it’s cheap

Question 2

conventional energy sources

Answer 2

energy sources that have been used for a long time like oil, gas, coal, hydro-electric, and nuclear electricity

Question 3

alternative energy sources

Answer 3

are energy sources that are being available and beginning to be used like wind, solar, and biomass energy

Question 4

breakdown of energy uses

Answer 4

35% natural gases, 39%oil, and 24% electric (98% of our sources are conventional)

Question 5

Petajoule

Answer 5

used to measure large amounts of energy to compare energy uses from very large users and/or sectors of the economy
-a joule is a tiny amount, gigajoule is 1 billion joules, and petajoule is one million GT

Question 6

hydro-electricity

Answer 6

comes from fast flowing rivers with significant change in elevation.
-it doesnt pollute, is renewable, cheap to operate, and resovoirs create recreation areas
- expensive to build, sites are far from markets that need long transmission lines

Question 7

thermal energy

Answer 7

comes from burning coal, oil, gas, wood or garbage to create steam
- its near markets, cheap to build
-pollutes, fuels are expensive, and uses non renewable resources

Question 8

nuclear energy

Answer 8

from the breakdown of uranium atoms (radioactive)
-near markets, canada already has uranium, and no air pollution, low operating costs
- high construction costs, potencially harmful radio active waste

Question 9

groundwater

Answer 9

water that soaks into Earth through soil,layer of sand, gravel, and porous rock. it provides plants with moisture and is a water source
- must be protected because if too much is used by large urban areas, draining and swaps, water tables are lower and the earth is dried up

Question 10

run-off

Answer 10

the water that flows over land into lakes and rivers

Question 11

saturated zone

Answer 11

is where water has soaked in land and can be soaked no more

Question 12

water table

Answer 12

the top of the saturated zone

Question 13

lakes

Answer 13

store water and release it to maintain river flow

Question 14

wetlands

Answer 14

are areas of land that are saturated by water and provide a habitat for fish, reptiles, and insects

Question 15

watershed

Answer 15

the slightly higher area of land that seperates drainage basins

Question 16

drainage basin

Answer 16

areas drained by rivers and their tributaries Canada has 5

Question 17

discharge rate

Answer 17

the amount of water that flows through a drainage basin per year
-can change depending on weather and time of year (flooding or drying up)
dams are built to regulate river flow

Question 18

instream use

Answer 18

water being used without removing it from its source

Question 19

withdrawl use

Answer 19

water being used by removing it from its source

Question 20

what purpose do wetlands serve

Answer 20

source of ground water, store floodwater, plants filter pollution, provide wildlife homes, and are important for hunting and research