...Date Energy resources Energy resources are things that can provide energy to give light, heat or provide mechanical power. Energy resources are; wind, coal, solar energy, geothermal wells, ocean tides and moving water. Some energy resources can be transformed and transferred from their natural form or location to be other consumption sites (Dewulf 2221). We shall discuss electricity and coal. Electricity is obtained from the environment by harnessing mechanical power from wind, moving water, ocean tides, coal and others. We shall focus on electricity collected from geothermal wells (Ruth 36). Steam is gathered and directed to turbines that rotate generators to produce electricity. Coal is mined from fossil sites in solid state. Electricity is the most versatile form of energy as it is found in many forms and can also be used for lighting, heating, running electronics and others. Unlike electricity, coal can be used in fewer applications mostly to heat and production of mechanical power. Unlike electricity, it is bulky and emits carbon dioxide that is harmful to the environment therefore, it is limited in usage. Contrary to coal, electricity can be transported miles away from the thermal station with extremely low costs and delivered instantly unlike coal that will have to use road or rail and transported to consumers. Geothermal energy is gaining popularity as it is a clean energy source while coal is losing and becoming outdated (Zavattoni 124). Geothermal energy is obtained...
Words: 339 - Pages: 2
...renewable energy alternatives to compete with fossil fuels are described. Among them presented in this video were wind power, solar energy, and biomass fermentation. Although each of these energy sources provides efficient energy without extensive harm to the environment from byproducts, they each possess their own challenges while using and managing them. Wind power is generated through the use of a turbine, usually mounted on a tower. The turbine collects wind energy and converts it to electricity which is transferred to your houses breaker pane. Energy from wind powered devices depends on strong enough winds to move the large turbines, which makes the turbines create energy. Without wind to spin the turbines, energy would not be created through this method. Solar energy is energy produced from the sun using panels. Solar panels are very expensive to purchase and maintain. A challenge with using solar panels is the intensity of sunlight affects the output of energy. If the solar panels do not receive enough sunlight, they will not produce enough energy for use. Biomass Fermentation involves converting biomass into ethanol. The fermentation process converts sugars into ethanol using yeast or bacteria which feed on sugars. Ethanol and carbon dioxide are produced as the sugar is consumed. A challenge with using biomass fermentation as a means of energy is getting farmers to collect the material after harvesting to convert it into fuel. In addition to the renewable energy resources...
Words: 325 - Pages: 2
...Energy Resource Challenges Checkpoint SCI/275 August 25, 2010 Bridgette Mack The Alternative video talked about different types of renewable energy wind power, solar power and biofuel. Wind power a method that solely depends on if there is wind that will make these very large turbines turn and if there is no wind they don’t turn. Another type of renewable energy would be solar power and it depends on the sun and uses panels that collect sun light beams and with the use of generators to form energy. You also have biofuel that is use to produce ethanol which comes corn scientist want to use other materials from farmers after they have harvest their land to see if it can also be made into liquid fuel. Having a different method of energy I think would be good especially if these methods aren’t harming our environment but with the good there is some bad. The challenges I think would be with wind energy this object depends on if the wind is blowing strong enough to turn those turbines and what if there isn’t any wind at all that mean there no energy to produces and the solar panel I think would be costly in the begin and they may off in the long run but it would have to take many miles and much land to produce enough of these panels to supply everyone with solar power and what it there is no sun what then. One other source of renewable would be water power which you can produce power from the use of water. I think that we need to start now to find some other way to produce...
Words: 304 - Pages: 2
...Week Eight Checkpoint Energy Resource Challenges SCI/275 Cindy Walker Conserving energy is a key factor in the improvement of the planet in which we live. I practice conserving energy by doing little things such as turning lights off when I leave the room and turning the heat or the air conditioner down a little lower than I normally would. I believe if everyone in the world would take these little steps we can make a momentous impact on the environment. Natural gas and oil are the most common natural resources used to run our homes efficiently. Consequently, these natural resources can and will run out in the future if we do not begin to conserve today. I have challenged myself to reduce the size of the ecological footprint which I put on the earth. I am proud to say that I am a recovering shopaholic. You see, I am a mother of three little girls and love for them to look their best at all times. So, I would go out and buy them new clothes for just about every occasion. During this time I thought I was being resourceful by purchasing cheap trendy clothes for them to wear instead of the more expensive higher quality clothing. However, after completing an environmental science course, I realized I wasn’t being resourceful; instead I was being quite wasteful. I realized that buying a large amount of cheap trendy clothes was costing me more money and creating more trash than buying higher quality clothing. I noticed that the cheap clothes could only be worn a couple...
Words: 503 - Pages: 3
...meeting to discuss the importance of the energy issue we are facing in our community. The reason why conserving energy is important right now is so we can save our environment from further damage, conserving energy will also save our community money. We need to know the difference between renewable and non-renewable resources, and what methods we need to take to conserve energy. Non – renewable resources are oil, coal, natural gases, and nuclear energy; non - renewable means that once we run out it cannot be replaced. These non-renewable resources are also harmful to our environment with their chemicals when burning fills our air, and their leaks and spills of oil in our ocean. Renewable resources are solar power, wind, biomass, tidal energy, and a few more; renewable energy generates directly from the sun, wind, rain, and tides. Renewable technologies will save money and boost our economy in the process. Each of you can help save energy indoors by: 1. turning off lights and electronics when not in use 2. use energy saving light bulbs 3. insulating your doors, and windows and the environment by: 4. plant trees 5. recycle 6. drive less The government effort in conservation has many applications for helping our environment. “Opportunities for energy conservation are increasingly available in almost every application in any setting. Home, school, office, and industrial environments have all benefited from cost-saving and energy-saving innovations” (U.S. environmental...
Words: 323 - Pages: 2
...Energy Resource Plan Andria Cogar Axia College Our utility bills have been increasing in past months that have raised many questions about the cause. Is no one in the family is turning off the lights when a room is not being occupied, doing less than a full load of laundry, and not taking shorter showers? Energy conservation is on the rise, even though few try to stick with what will make the environment better. Conserving energy can be helpful in a number of ways; whether it be to save money for a family vacation, decreasing pollutions in the air we breathe; or just stopping the amount of green house gases being emitted into our atmosphere. We are using nonrenewable energy to supply us with energy to cook, clean, and keeping us warm; without even thinking of its consequences, which in turn will not last forever. There are distinctions between nonrenewable and renewable energy that will help in the future to ensure a better way of life. Nonrenewable energy is energy that comes from the ground, and is not replaced in a short amount of time. Fossil fuels are the main source of nonrenewable energy, which includes; oil, natural gas, and coal. Steaming from plants, and animals’ decomposed remains; that have been in the soil for millions of years. Renewable energy is energy is energy that replenishes itself automatically from natural processes. Examples include; wind, sunshine, biological processes, flowing water, and geothermal heat flows are all methods of renewable energy...
Words: 676 - Pages: 3
...Energy Resource Challenges SCI/275 Joshua Dodson 11/04/11 Renewable energy alternatives have many challenges, and managing these resources has become a nightmare. Renewable alternatives such as wind, solar, biofuels, and hydroelectric have become very popular as an alternative to nonrenewable energy resources. The first renewable energy alternative is wind energy. Because wind will always be around, the use of wind turbines is an energy alternative. A big challenge is that we cannot control the wind; some days it is strong and other days it is calm. Solar energy is another energy alternative. Photovoltaic solar electricity is the technology that is most cost effective to consumers in the United States. The greatest challenge to solar energy is that for 12 hours a day we do not have any sunlight, and there are days when it is to cloudy. Biofuels are derived from biomass (organic material) plants and animal waste. With today’s technology we can gather the leftovers from a harvest of corn such as, stalks, and stubble to produce ethanol. The challenge with this process is that it takes a great deal of organic material to produce a small amount of biofuel. Another renewable alternative that was not mentioned is hydroelectricity. The use of dams to produce electricity is very costly, and it takes a great deal of water to generate a small amount of electricity. Nonrenewable energy resources include coal, oil, and natural gas, which pollute our environment. The...
Words: 295 - Pages: 2
...Energy Resource Plan June 03, 2012 Energy Resource Plan This Homeowner’s Association meeting is taking place to discuss the importance of the energy issue we are facing within our communities. The reason why conserving energy is important is because we can save our environment and our climate from further damage. Not only will conserving energy assist in our environment but it will also save everyone money. In order to conserve energy we first need to know the difference between renewable and non-renewable resources and the methods we can use to help conserve energy. Non-renewable resources include oil, coal, natural gases, and nuclear energy. Non-renewable refers to not being able to replace these sources once they run out. Non-renewable resources are harmful to our environment because of all their chemicals such as when burning pollutes our air and their leaks and spills pollute our ocean. Renewable resources include solar power, wind energy, biomass fermentation, tidal energy, and a few more. Renewable energy generates directly from the sun, wind, rain, and tides. The use of renewable technologies will help save money and boost our economy in the process. Here are a few methods to help conserve energy indoors: 1. Turn off the lights and electronics when they are not in use. 2. Use energy saving light bulbs. 3. Insulate doors and windows. Three methods that will help the environment in the process are: 1. Planting...
Words: 383 - Pages: 2
...is important to conserve energy especially when it is produced by non-renewable resources. We use non-renewable fuels to crank our cars, to hear our homes and to cool our homes. When pollutants from these non-renewable fuels are released into the air it contaminate the air we breathe along with the water that we drink. With that being said it is important to conserve energy to keep the air that we breathe cleaner. Conserving energy is also important because it reduces the electric bill and the gas bill which in turns save you money. Using renewable resources are the better ways to conserve energy and to maintain a healthier atmosphere for all humans, plants, and animals. There are two types of energy resources and they are renewable and non-renewable resources. There are three top renewable resources and they are but not limited to solar energy, wind energy and hydropower. Solar energy comes directly and indirectly from the sun which contributes to the growth of plants and trees. Wind energy is the movement of air when warm air descends and cooler air comes in. This type of energy is beneficial for sailboats. Hydropower comes directly from the energy of flowing water which make electricity. All of these renewable resources come directly from the earth. Non-renewable resources are coal, petroleum, natural gas, and nuclear energy. These resources come from underground and most of them derive from the fossil of dead plants and animals. This resources are not reusable which...
Words: 482 - Pages: 2
...Renewable Energy Resources or Fossil Fuels: Global Warming, Efficacy and Cost Jeneen Rybak English Composition II Professor Sharon Carmack December 27, 2012 Throughout history, people have consistently developed a more convenient way to manage daily life. They have created ways to have access to fresh clean water, systems to remove human waste from within the home, heat, transportation, and electricity. People have become accustom to convenience, without thinking about the damage they could be causing to their own environment. It has become apparent that the human race has inadvertently and irreversibly caused damage to the very environment they depend on. Most of this damage is in our atmosphere due to the use of fossil fuels and the emission of carbon dioxide. Now is the time for the U.S Environmental policy to focus on developing renewable energy resources rather than further developing more oil resources. Global warming can be seen in numerous different forms, including severe weather patterns, changing seasons and melting glaciers. Since 1912, the Kilimanjaro snows have melted more than 80 percent and the glaciers of the Himalaya in India are retreating so quickly that researchers believe they could completely disappear by 2035. Even the migration pattern of animals and insects has changed with the rising temperatures (Glick, 2004). Though the cost of renewable energy sources may be slightly higher than oil (Rangarajan, & Guggenberger...
Words: 2112 - Pages: 9
...Most conversations regarding the planets energy resources and their appropriate place in today’s society reveal extensive ignorance on the subject and deliberate misinformation by both sides of the argument;, the energy producers and the environmentalists. Any honest appraisal of the future of global energy must begin with a full and balanced understanding of resources and their uses. The earth provides us with two basic natural energy resources, fossil fuels and renewable flows of energies stemming from the heat of the sun, as solar energy and the winds which circle the planet, as well as the movement of water and the internal energies of the planet (geo-thermals). Fossil fuels are the products of the conversion of biomass, which, through fossilization, yields coal, oil and natural gas. Coal became the world’s most important solid fuel during the 1890s, when their energy content surpassed that of the traditional fuels of the day (wood and crop residues). Today, coal provides less than 25 percent of the world’s total primary energy supply. A ton of coal has an energy equivalent to about ½ ton of crude oil. The energy content of all crude oils and liquids produced by their refining is very similar: about twice as large as that of coal and almost three times as large as that of cord wood. Crude oil became the world’s most important primary fuel during the 1970s and now it provides about 40 percent of the world’s total primary energy supply. Natural gases are usually mixtures...
Words: 1227 - Pages: 5
...Natural Resources and Energy Paper People, Science, and the Environment SCI 256 “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed.” (Gandhi, 2011) Did Gandhi have foresight into the destructive ways of humans? Earth seemed to have endless amenities that would take humans a lifetime to consume. With the abundance of these amenities, have humans failed to conserve and nurture nature’s gifts in the name of greed? In this paper, the subject to identify and discuss will be the effects that a growing human population may have on the marine ecosystem’s resources, including loss or harm to population of wild species; discuss one management practice of sustainability and conservation of natural resources in the marine ecosystem. Finally, the paper will identify is the risks and benefits of extracting or using one type of nonrenewable and one type of renewable energy resource from the marine ecosystem. From a distance in space humans look at this planet called Earth. Earth covers the massive blue oceans of life. Planet Earth humans call home consist of numerous types of land and marine species from the deepest part of the ocean to the clear shallow water of sandy beaches that lie within an ecosystem. The marine ecosystem is so complex but at the same time it is not complicated. Humans cannot see creatures with the naked eye but can spot a massive blue whale from a distance;...
Words: 1838 - Pages: 8
...1a) Explain the classification of the selected energy resources shown. This resource shows the environmental impacts, social acceptability and economic costs of a select few energy sources. They are classified in this way for a number of reasons. Nuclear power is shown to have high economic costs, this is because it is very expensive to build and decommission nuclear power stations, it also an expensive process to mine, process and enrich uranium and plutonium required as nuclear fuel. Nuclear waste must also be stored for a very long period adding to the cost. Nuclear has medium environmental impacts due to the energy required to mine transport and process nuclear fuels creating CO2 emissions, and nuclear waste can be hazardous and harmful to the environment if not properly stored, as it can be hazardous and prone to disasters it also has very low social acceptability. Coal is the most abundant, easily mined fossil fuel, it is also very cheap to set up coal fired power stations, this means it has very low economic costs. It produces large volumes of CO2 and other dirtier greenhouse gases and a pollutant meaning it has very high environmental impacts. It also has high social acceptability as it is cheap, not dangerous and not power plants are in industrial areas away from homes so it has limited NIMBY issues and noise, light and visual pollution. Wind power has medium social acceptability due to its noisiness and ugliness and positioning near residential areas causing...
Words: 370 - Pages: 2
...“I’m also issuing a new goal for America: Let’s cut in half the energy wasted by our homes and businesses over the next 20 years,” Obama said”-Brad Plumer, Washington Post (Pres. Plan to be more energy efficient) 1. The president is definitely thinking about renewable resources and wants to incorporate them into the average American’s life, but again and again he uses words like “hope to”, “proposals”, words implying that these plans are loosely constructed and not in the forefront of the United State’s government’s mind. Maybe this is because his deadline is 20 years away. Obviously long term programs haven’t worked thus far. Making short term projects will make for stricter deadlines, a more focused and motivated team of officials and more projects getting up and running for the near future. 2. We believe that some of the short term programs that should be enacted first are getting the federal government agencies and the White House itself to start using renewable resources. To start having half of the energy these buildings are using to come from renewable energy resources like solar or wind power. By incorporating these types of renewable energy resources into their everyday lives, they will soon encourage the American peoples to use them to, not to mention benefiting the economy. 3. Advertising programs. B. “The White House’s fact sheet went even further, laying out a proposal to double the energy efficiency of the entire U.S. economy over that time...
Words: 759 - Pages: 4
...(b) To what extent are domestic energy resources important in determining the energy security of countries? (15) To have energy security means to have access to reliable and affordable energy sources. E.g. Russia and their natural gas reserves. Countries/regions/localities that do not haver this are said to be energy insecure. E.g. Rural communities in Zimbabwe or the UK winter fuel allowance for the elderly is a recognition of fuel poverty. Domestic energy resources refers to the energy produced from a primary product, within the country. It may be seen that domestic energy resources are important in determining the energy security of the country. This may be because countries that rely on exported energy from other countries are more vulnerable to political issues. An example of this is the Russia-Ukraine dispute over prices of gas. On 31st December 2008, Russia and Ukraine hadn't come to an agreement on the price Russia would pay for transit through Ukraine, and the price Russia would charge Ukraine for the gas. This led to a halt in gas transit, when Russia decided to cut supplies off on New Year's Day, 2009. EU depends on Russia for a quarter of its gas supplies, in which 80% is pumped through Ukraine. When supplies were cut off, many countries down the line were affected. A country particularly affected was Bulgaria, who relies on some 80% of their gas imports. Bulgaria said, at the time of the incident, that they only had sufficient supplies ‘for a few days’. It said...
Words: 683 - Pages: 3
