RESOURCE ISSUES
Resource Issues
• Natural Resources
• Renewable vs. Non-renewable Resources
• Sustainable Development
• Energy Demand and Production
• Peak Oil
• Energy Alternatives
• Global Atmosphere Problems
Natural resources =
• exist without actions of humankind
• materials or substances such as minerals,
forests, water,
& fertile land
that occur in
nature & can
be used for
economic
gain
Technology, Energy Consumption
& Environmental Impact
There has been a dramatic increase in:
• individual energy use over time: 3,000 kcal/person
in prehistory - 300,000 kcal/person today
• the power of technology to change the
environment: think stone axe versus bulldozer
versus atomic bomb
• the scope and severity of
environmental impacts
Energy Resources
Energy Resources
• Non-renewable Energy Source
– Coal, Oil, Natural Gas
– Nuclear Power/Uranium
• Renewable Energy Sources
– Hydroelectric
– Solar
– Wind
– Biomass Fuels
Fossil Fuels
• Coal - most polluting; L.D.C.s
• Oil - used extensively in all countries, with the developed
world consuming the most
• Natural Gas - cleanest of the fossils fuels; developed
countries
Average American releases 5 tons of carbon per year into the
atmosphere. Average Indian: 1/4 ton
•Natural gas supplies the US with 26% of its energy, 18% for the UK, 4% for India and 3% for Japan
•Oil supplies the US with 30% of its energy, 50% for the UK, 10% for Japan, 22% for India and 90% for
Nigeria
•The former Soviet Union is the largest oil (nearly 12 million barrels per day) and gas producer (25,000
billion cubic feet per year)
Fossil Fuels: How much is left?
• Proven Reserves vs. Potential Reserves
– Much thought to lie under South China
Sea and in NW China
• Oil: at current rates of consumption,
petroleum gone in < 40 years. Rate of
discovery is lower than increasing rate of
consumption.
• Natural Gas: 80 years; much less if we
switch from oil to gas.
• Coal: hundreds of years.
Hubbert Peak Oil Theory
Global Energy Demand Trends
Fossil Fuels: Where
is the oil?
Fossil Fuels: Where
is the Natural Gas?
Fossil Fuels: Where is the energy
consumed?
Energy Production
Energy Production
Energy Production
Energy Production
California Geothermal (<5%)
The Geyers, Santa Rosa, CA
World’s Largest Geothermal Plant
California Wind (1%)
• Works profitably
in very windy
locations.
• Large and
unsightly.
• Requires lots of
land.
• Works well in
windy deserts where
few people live.
Texas has huge
potential.
Wind Turbines along San Gorgonio Pass, Interstate 10, Palm Springs, CA
California Solar (<1%)
• Passive Solar
• Active Solar - Photovoltaics
• Initially expensive
• Interconnectivity and grid
issues
• Huge Untapped Potential
• Federal and State
Government incentives come
California Nuclear (16%)
• Uranium is a limited,
non-renewable
resource.
• Nuclear power is
inherently dangerous.
• Targets for terrorism.
• Earthquake risks.
• Inevitable radioactive
waste.
Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant, Central Coast
California Hydroelectric (24%)
• Clean, renewable
energy
• Little growth since
nearly all rivers in the
MDCs damned.
• Globally dams are still
being constructed
agressively.
• China currently
building Three Gorges,
the largest dam ever.
Shasta Dam, Lake Shasta, Mt. Shasta
Dams and Global
River Degradation
Shasta Dam, CA
AswanDam, Egypt Lake Nasser
The Geography of Large Dams
• Over 39,000 large dams by 1986
Global Atmospheric Issues
• The Ozone Hole
???
• Global Warming
???
The Greenhouse Effect
A normal climatic warming effect caused by permitting
incoming solar radiation but inhibiting outgoing
terrestrial radiation.
Three gases are the primary cause:
• Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
• Methane (CH4)
• Water Vapor (H2O)
The effect is possible because outgoing earth radiation is
of much longer wavelengths than incoming insolation.
b
The Global Warming Hypothesis
Human-induced rise in CO2 levels is theorized to
lead to unnatural warming of atmosphere.
• Likely effects:
– Increased storminess
– Rising sea level (.2-1 meter in 100 years – IPCC,
2001)
– Loss of arable land (some areas hotter, others
cooler)
– Extinction of thousands of species
– Loss of nearly all coral reef
• Possible effects even include climate “flip-flop”
wherein dangerous rapid cooling sets in!
Global Warming
