Environment

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and turning them into nutrient-rich dung → Landfill sites: a definite terminus for wastes that are not able to contribute any benefits or can't be reused ➜ Incineration: pollutes the air; method of crashing waste products and turning it into pieces 5. Energy sources The climate crisis is forcing use to re-examine how we generate our energy. Our dependence on oil is not sustainable. Fossil fuel emissions are damaging the environment. Search for renewable energy is creating new economic opportunities. 6. Biofuels Made from crops such as corn and palm oil. Amount of released carbon into the atmosphere = amount of absorbed carbon when they grow Demand for biofuels to supplement diesel has increased the rate of deforestation: → global warming (because: forests, tropical rainforests, absorb carbon dioxide, without them carbon dioxide levels increase) → Animal habitats are destroyed → extinction of species renewable sources of energy -> come from natural sources/ processes that are constantly replenished -> "clean energy": sunlight, solar energy, wind power, wave power, biomass, ocean SOLAR ENERGY environmentally-friendly/ emission- ● inexhaustible ● free ● clean and cheap to run saves energy (solar panels) high construction and maintenance costs dependent on the weather/ unreliable/ depending on geographical factors problem of storage for immediate use production of solar panels leads to toxic and radioactive waste requires large space certain solar cells require expensive and rare materials WIND environmentally-friendly can be saved can be produced during day and night low operating costs efficient use of land space clean and cheap to run inconsistent, loud, noisy wind turbines are and eyesore to some people wind turbines endanger animals (birds, fishs) -> may result in death high construction costs depending on locations (i.e. mountains) resistance from local inhabitants HYDROPOWER(WATER) limitless/ infinitely renewable? clean ● reliable does not pollute air/ water emission- free facilities need a lot of space affects natural habitats (rivers+lakes) very expensive ->construction costs depending on the amount of water might lead to conflicts between bordering states forces relocation of people and animals non-renewable sources of energy -> only available in limited amounts -> take a long time to replenish -> "dirty energy": fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal), nuclear energy ● ● ● ● ● ● NUCLEAR ENERGY cheap, low-cost energy reliable no pollution/ low emissions high energy density a lot of technical expertise is needed risk of nuclear accidents (environment and people living there, health risks and destruction of the environment due to radiation) ex.: disaster in Fukushima health problems even for future generations (gene alteration) high construction costs of nuclear power plants problem of disposing nuclear waste FOSSIL FUELS (OIL, GAS, COAL) currently one of the cheaper sources ability to generate enorme amounts of power can be found easily not environmentally-friendly dangerous limited resources/ depleting OIL relatively inexpensive wealth for countries having oil resources high reliability easy storage oil industry creates many jobs high energy density limited + expensive resource bad for the environment (emissions) political impact on oil supply lots of countries rely on oil oil transportation by ship can lead to spills -> causing environmental + ecological damage ● ● may change the temperature and flow of water GEOTHERMAL Works in some regions (Iceland) -> in this case it is a pretty reliable source of energy Restricted to certain locations High costs / low profit Gases emitted to the atmosphere -> less environmentally-friendly BIOMASS no impact on amount of CO₂ liquid or gas reduces water high costs take up a lot of space that could be used for food production more CO during production than for fossil fuels WAVE POWER clean, compact does not need to much space has a long lifetime only possible near the ocean new source of energy -> still expertise required high construction costs ● ● ● COAL can be burned directly inexpensive compared to other energy sources good for recreational use (drawing) reduces dependence on foreign oil reliable liquificiation, gasification require large amounts of water releases the most CO₂of all fossil fuels high transport costs for coal