NATURAL RESOURCES

Lesson 3

Non- Renewable Natural Resources

Review – What’s a Non-Renewable Natural Resource?

Non-renewable resources are natural resources that are gone when they are used once.

Metals such as gold, iron, and nickel are non-renewable. Once all the gold has been taken from the ground, it is finished. BUT, metals can be recycled and re-used over and over again

Fossil fuels such as coal and oil are non-renewable. Once we have taken all the oil from the earth and burned it to create energy, that’s it! No more oil! Also, these fossil fuels are very damaging to the environment when burned to make energy.

MineralsMinerals are some of our most

important non- renewable resources. Minerals are categorized as metallic minerals, non-metallic minerals, structural minerals, and fossil fuels.

Metallic minerals – metals are found in rocks called “ores” e.g. “iron ore”.

Salt is an example of a non-metallic mineral.

Oil, natural gas, and coal are examples of fossil fuels.

This crushed stone is a structural mineral used in building. Structural minerals are a sub-group of non-metallic minerals.

READ THE CHART AND WEB ON PAGE 220.

OIL!In the modern world we depend on products

that come from oil.

How was oil formed? Oil was formed from the ancient remains of plants and animals buried deep underground.

How do we get oil products?

1. Scientists locate oil deposits – this is very difficult and expensive

2. Oil companies drill down to the oil deposit to make an oil well

3. The “crude oil” is transported to an “oil refinery”

4. At the oil refinery, the crude oil is divided into parts that we can use

5. The oil products are transported to other factories or locations to be sold

The whole process is very expensive

An oil well on land

An oil well at sea. This one has caught fire…it’s very dangerous work!

OIL!Oil tankers can transport millions of barrels of oil!

Oil refineries divide crude oil into parts that we can use.

Oil producing regions become very wealthy e.g.

Left – Calgary, Alberta

Right – Saudi Arabia

Products From Oil

We make many products in the modern world from crude oil. The largest percentage is used as gasoline in cars and other vehicles but there are many other uses.

Copy the diagram.

Problems with oil…#1IT WILL RUN OUT ONE DAY

Oil is non-renewable so eventually we will run out of it. It’s not clear when oil will run out, but now we use 85 million barrels of oil each day. By 2030 we may be using 113 million barrels each day.

If or when the world runs out of oil, it will mean huge changes in the way we live. For example, imagine a world with millions of cars but no gasoline. All the cars would be useless. So, scientists are looking for new ways to power vehicles using renewable, clean energy sources. One way to do this is to use liquid hydrogen to power an electric motor which runs the car. Hydrogen is very plentiful and the only thing to come out of the exhaust pipe would be water! So it would be clean. The Honda Clarity is a hydrogen powered electric car sold in California. Maybe it’s the way of the future.

The Honda Clarity uses liquid hydrogen to power an electric engine. It’s clean and it doesn’t use oil. Is this the way of the future?

Problems with oil…#2

AIR POLLUTION

When we burn fossil fuels such as oil to produce energy, pollutants are put into the air. This problem is seen most obviously in huge cities when the pollution stays close to the ground in hot weather causing smog.

Smog pollution hanging over Los Angeles

Smog can affect breathing and cause health problems

Problems with oil…#3CLIMATE CHANGEScientists believe that when

we burn fossil fuels such as oil products, gasses are released into the high atmosphere. These “greenhouse gasses” prevent heat from escaping from the world. The results, say the scientists, are global warming and climate change.

These scientists believe that we must find alternate sources of energy to prevent climate change from getting worse.

Problems with oil…#4

OIL DISASTERS

If crude oil is spilled in the environment, it can cause terrible results for animals, and their habitats. This has happened when oil tankers have leaked oil because of a shipping disaster.

The most famous example was the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989. The ship leaked oil which caused damage to the Alaska coastline and wildlife.

So…

The example of oil shows us:

- How much we depend on non-renewable natural resources

- How expensive, complicated, and dangerous it is to find, extract, process, and transport resources so we can get what we need

- How natural resources can result in great wealth in some parts for the world e.g. Alberta

- How we must prepare for the day when non-renewable natural resources like oil run out

- How the use of some non-renewable natural resources can cause damage to the environment

HOMEWORK – GO FURTHER WITH YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF NON-RENEWABLE RESOURCES BY READING CHAPTER 11 STARTING ON PAGE 218.