P3: energy resources

• With an increase in population and a growing demand around the world for electricity, it's become an even bigger issue for where we get our energy from and our electricity from
• Traditionally around the world we've got a lot of our energy and electricity from burning fossil fuels
• Burning fossil fuels to create electricity

  1. Burning coal, oil, or gas

  2. Heating up steam

  3. Turning turbine

  4. Converting kinetic energy to electrical energy
• Burning fossil fuels

  Causes greenhouse effect
• Greenhouse effect

  The sun's heat enters the atmosphere and cannot escape due to gases like carbon dioxide and methane trapping the heat
• Burning fossil fuels also produces other pollutants like sulfur dioxide which causes acid rain, and carbon particulates which are carcinogenic and can cause asthma
• Fossil fuels are still used a lot because they are cheap and the technology is well-established, but they are causing irreversible changes to the planet
• Sustainable


  Meeting the current demands of a generation without hindering future generations
• Solar energy

  • Uses sunlight to generate electricity, not heat
  • Cheap once installed
  • Reduces carbon footprint
• Limitations of solar energy

  • Sunlight not always available, especially in winter and cloudy weather
  • Only works at full capacity in sunny conditions
• Wind power

  • Uses kinetic energy of wind to generate electricity
  • Cheap once installed
  • Reduces carbon footprint
• Limitations of wind power

  • Wind not always available
  • Wind turbines can be aesthetically displeasing and cause noise pollution
• Wave and tidal power

  • Uses kinetic energy of waves and tides to generate electricity
  • Reduces carbon footprint
• Limitations of wave and tidal power

  • Tides only come in and out twice a day, limiting electricity generation
  • Can be aesthetically displeasing and take up a lot of coastline
• Nuclear energy

  Considered a finite and non-renewable resource, but can still be seen as sustainable due to efficient use of fuel and plentiful supply
• Nuclear energy has risks, such as the Chernobyl disaster, and the problem of nuclear waste
• Hydroelectricity

  • Uses water to generate electricity
  • Plentiful resource that won't run out
  • Cheap once dam is built
• Limitations of hydroelectricity

  • Requires clearing large areas of land to build dams, disrupting ecosystems
  • Can drown rainforests and disrupt migrating fish and other wildlife