Non-Renewable Resources

• Non-Renewable Resources


  Resources that are not replenished naturally and will eventually run out
• Non-renewable resources don't currently meet all our needs so we still need those nasty, polluting non-renewables
• Non-Renewable Resources (Fossil Fuels and Nuclear Energy)

  • Reliable
  • Slowly running out
• If no new resources are found, some fossil fuel stocks may run out within a hundred years
• Nuclear power


  Produces electricity
• Using Fossil Fuels


  • Cost effective way to produce energy
  • Set-up costs of power plants can be quite high
  • Running costs aren't that expensive
  • Fuel extraction costs are fairly low
• Burning coal, oil and gas

  Releases carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere, contributing to the greenhouse effect and global warming
• Burning coal and oil

  Releases sulfur dioxide, causing acid rain which can be harmful to trees, soils and ecosystems
• Acid Rain


  • Can be reduced by taking the sulfur out before the fuel is burned, or cleaning up the emissions
• Fossil fuel power plants can spoil views and coal mining makes a mess of the landscape, especially "open-cast mining"
• Oil spillages cause serious environmental problems, affecting mammals and birds that live in and around the sea
• Nuclear Power


  • Clean but the nuclear waste is very dangerous and difficult to dispose of
  • Relatively cheap fuel but overall cost is high due to the cost of the power plant and final decommissioning
  • Carries the risk of a major catastrophe like the Fukushima disaster
• Radiation from nuclear power can be very dangerous to humans
• Over the 20th century, the electricity use of the UK hugely increased as the population grew and people began to use electricity for more and more things
• Since the beginning of the 21st century, electricity use in the UK has been decreasing (slowly), as we get better at making appliances more efficient and become more careful with energy use in our homes
• Some of our electricity is produced using fossil fuels and from nuclear power
• Generating electricity isn't the only reason we burn fossil fuels - oil (diesel and petrol) is used to fuel cars, and gas is used to heat homes and cook food