1. Chapter 13: Natural Resources
13.1 Natural resources support human activity
13.2 Minerals and rocks are nonrenewable resources
13.3 Resources can be conserved and recycled
13.4 Resources can be converted to useful forms

2. Warm-up questions
What is the major source of energy for the earth system?
Sun
Name three forms of energy.
mechanical, sound, chemical, heat, electromagnetic
Describe ways energy is transferred.
radiation, conduction, or convection

3. What resources do you need the most?
Think about products you commonly use…
Clothing, books, electronics…
Which materials do you use the most often?
What materials are these products made of? Plastic? Cloth? Metal?
What if these materials disappeared overnight?
Items
Materials

4. Natural Resources provide materials and energy
Natural Resource: any energy source, organism, or substance found in nature that people use
Earth system: atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, geosphere
Provide all materials needed to support human life
Atmosphere: air and rain
Hydrosphere: all waters
Biosphere: life, sources of food, fuel, clothing, shelter
Geosphere: also sources of food, fuel, clothing, shelter

5. Natural Resources provide materials and energy
Costs and benefits exist in using natural resources
Burning coal
Benefit: produces heat
Cost: releases smoke that pollutes the air
Cut down forests
Benefits…
Cost: exposes soil to air (wind and rain)
Strips topsoil – harder for new trees to grow
Soils can clog streams and rivers, killing fish and other animals
Some resources are constantly being replaced
River water, wind in a windmill
Some resources are used faster than they can be replaced
Fossil fuels (oil, coal, natural gas)

6. Natural Resources provide materials and energy
Renewable Resource: a natural resource that can be replaced in nature at about the same rate it is used
Ex: sunlight, wind, water, trees, other plants
Ex: lumber company plants a new tree for each mature tree it cuts down
Number of trees stays constant
Nonrenewable Resource: exists in a fixe amount, or is used up faster than it can be replaced in nature
Supply is limited
All resources produced by geologic forces are nonrenewable
Ex: oil, coal, gas, uranium – form over millions of years
Use faster than can be replaced by nature? Become more scarce and more expensive!
Must conserve or develop alternative energy sources (solar and wind)

7. Think about…
A community wants to use only wind for its energy production.
What are some limitations they should consider?
It might take many windmills for energy production to match consumption
It might not be windy enough for wind to be the sole method of energy production.

8. Summarize the costs and benefits of using natural resources.
Benefit: supplies for all our needs
Costs: pollution, soil loss, and depletion of some resources
Compare and contrast renewable and nonrenewable resources.
A renewable resource can be replaced at about the same rate it is used.
A nonrenewable resource cannot be replaced or can be replaced only over millions of years.
After reading the common uses of each resource: which of these resources are used to generate electricity?
Resources used to produce electricity: sunlight, wind, water, coal, oil, natural gas, and uranium

9. Fossil fuels supply most of society’s energy
Coal, oil, and natural gas  electricity, heat, and fuel
Fossil fuel: a nonrenewable energy resource formed from ancient plants and animals buried in Earth’s crust for millions of years
This energy is a form of stored sunlight!
Ancient organisms, that used sunlight, died,  formed layers that were compressed  heat and pressure coal, oil, and natural gas
Burn easily and produce a lot of heat
Used to run most of of US’s power plants (electricity)
Water  stream turns a turbine  drives a generator to produce electricity  through power lines to towns and cities
Burning produces carbon dioxide (CO2), acids, other pollution

10. What is the function of the fossil fuel source?
to provide heat (to the boiler)
What does the boiler produce?
Steam
What does the steam do?
turns the turbine
What does the turbine do?
drives the generator
Which part of the plant actually produces the electricity?
the generator

11. Fossil Fuels - Coal Solid
Formed underground from buried and decayed plant material
Harder coal burns hotter and cleaner than softer coal
US, Russia, and China are the major producers
Surface mines: overlying rock is stripped away to expose coal
Deep mines: miners go underground to dig out coal
Mostly used to fuel power plants and run factories
Problems: pollution and destroys landscapes, miner’s health

12. Fossil Fuels – Oil and Natural Gas
Most is trapped underground in porous rock
heat and pressure push the oil and natural gas upward to nonporous rock
Wells drilled to bring the oil and natural gas to the surface
Deposits found under oceans and on land
Oil transported to refiners
Heat breaks oil into different parts:
Ex: gasoline, jet fuel, cleaning supplies, plastics
Easily transported: heat homes and power vehicles
Problems: oil spills!, air pollution (smog)

13. Fossil fuels, minerals, and plants supply materials for modern products
Oil broken down to different chemicals used to make plastics
Plastics are easily shaped, colored, and formed
Minerals are found in cars, airplanes, tools, wires…
Ex: calcite and gypsum – used in building materials and cement
20,000 lbs of minerals per year = in products used by YOU!
Plants: wood in buildings, furniture, other items…paper!
Source of dies, fibers, and medicines