Geography

Unit: Introduction to Geography

Section: Human Impact

Tutorial: Energy: Yesterday and Today

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In this activity, we will explore a brief history of energy, including the various energy resources
humans have used throughout history. We will also examine the impact the extraction and use of
various energy resources has had on the planet, and then look at the energy issues we face
today.

As you navigate through this tutorial, keep the following in mind:

• What energies have we traditionally used?
• Why is renewable energy important today?
• What energy concerns do we have now?
• What are the challenges facing the adoption and implementation of renewable energy?

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Fire was civilization’s greatest energy discovery. Wood was the primary source of fuel for the
majority of the history of civilization. In the 1800s, coal began to replace wood as the primary
source of fuel. Coal was cheaper and more efficient than wood, but a lot dirtier. In the early
1900s, mass production of the automobile launched a huge demand for petroleum to fuel cars.
Since the 1950s, oil has not only fueled our cars but also is the main source of energy for homes
and businesses.

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How well do you know your renewable and nonrenewable resources? Can you sort the list of
renewable and nonrenewable resources into the correct column?

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Wood was one of the original sources of energy for humans, as well as a primary resource in the
construction of buildings and other products. In the United States there was once a vast old
growth forest that covered most of the eastern half of the country, but over time the energy
source was utilized by humans to such an extent that little of that forest remains today.

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Eventually new discoveries and technological advances led humans to shift to the consumption of
coal as the primary source of energy. Coal is a very inexpensive source of energy, and it is the
most plentiful fuel in the fossil family.

The Industrial Revolution played a major role in expanding the use of coal. Coal is extracted from
mines all over the United States and the world.
Although clean-coal technologies are being developed, when coal burns, impurities like sulfur and
nitrogen are released into the air. While floating in the air, these substances can combine with
water and fall back to the earth as what scientists call “acid rain.”

Also, when coal burns, its carbon combines with oxygen in the air and forms carbon dioxide, one
of several gases known to cause global warming. Since the mid-1980s, the U.S. Government
has invested more than $3 billion in developing and testing clean-coal technologies to reduce the
impact of these pollutants from the coal-burning process.

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The discovery of fossil fuels changed the use of energy dramatically. Virtually all energy use has
shifted to fossil fuels, which includes petroleum, or oil, and natural gas. Petroleum is used to
produce fuel oil and gasoline which are primary energy sources. It is a flammable liquid found in
rock which consists of a mixture of hydrocarbons and other organic compounds. Natural gas is
colorless, shapeless, and odorless in its pure form. Quite uninteresting - except that natural gas is
combustible, and when burned it gives off a great deal of energy.

Almost all aspects of modern human life are dependent on the use of fossil fuels, including
transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, and electricity.

As with all natural resources, there is only a limited amount available to be consumed. These
resources do not replenish themselves. The same is unfortunately true with fossil fuels. Most
experts predict that we are now at a point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum
extraction has been reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline.

This means that extracting oil will continue to get more and more expensive, which is only
amplified by the rapidly increasing demand for oil by quickly developing countries such as India
and China. Added to the increased costs of fossil fuels is the increased conflict is naturally
occurring over the struggle for the limited available resources. For these reasons, new energy
options are being explored by countries around the world.

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With access to crude oil, or petroleum becoming more difficult, and prices and conflict rising,
people are worried about being dependent on petroleum for their widespread energy needs.
There is always a concern when a nonrenewable resource like petroleum is consumed.

There are essentially two options to reduce a nation’s dependency on fossil fuels: renewable
energies or conservation. While shifting towards renewable energy resources can have a
dramatic impact on reducing a dependency on fossil fuels, reducing the consumption of energy
through increased efficiencies and basic conservation can ultimately have the greatest impact.
Minor adjustments in lifestyle can significantly reduce energy consumption on an individual basis,
with a proportionally greater impact when applied on a large scale.

Scientists are in the process of developing many alternatives to the use of petroleum. Some of
these options include sugar, natural gas, hydrogen, and electricity. Scientists are also working on
developing more efficient and cost-effective means of utilizing existing renewable sources of
energy. Over the next few slides, we will learn a little bit more about these options. A
combination of conservation and the application of a variety of renewable energy resources can
provide the solution to fossil fuel dependency.
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Renewable energy is generated from natural resources that are naturally replenished. There are
several kinds of renewable energy. Solar, wind, hydro, tidal, geothermal, and biomass are
examples renewable energy.

Rollover each image to learn more about the various renewable energies available today.

Solar energy can be converted into other forms of energy, such as heat and electricity. Large flat
panels made up of individual solar cells are called solar panels and are used to harness sunlight
for energy use. The total solar energy absorbed by Earth's atmosphere, oceans and land
masses in one hour is more than the world uses in one year. The amount of solar energy
reaching the surface of the planet is so vast that in one year it is about twice as much as will ever
be obtained from all of the Earth's non-renewable resources of coal, oil, natural gas, and mined
uranium combined. However, the costs of implementing, storing, and transferring solar energy
are still high, so technology improvements are still needed to efficiently harness this massive
power potential on a large scale.

The most common form of renewable energy, wind energy is used to generate electricity. Wind
turbines convert the force of moving air into electricity using modern technology, but wind turbines
or wind mills have been used to create energy for thousands of years. Massive wind farms have
been built in areas with large amounts of wind, such as California and Texas, that can generate
enough energy thousands of homes. About 600 wind turbines produce enough energy to power
140,000 homes.

Hydro power is derived from the harnessing of energy of moving water. Water power has been
used for over 2000 years, with watermills as some of the earliest forms of hydro power. Today,
large damns can generate a great deal of energy, such as the Grand Coulee Dam in Washington,
which is the largest hydroelectric facility in the United States.

Tides in the ocean can be harnessed to create electricity with the use of undersea turbines, in
another form of hydro power. Wave power is yet another type of hydro power that is being
examined that can harness the immense power of ocean waves.

Geothermal power is energy generated from heat stored in the earth, or the collection of
absorbed heat derived from underground, which is essentially captured power from steam
geysers. The United States, Philippines, and Iceland are the only countries who are generating a
significant amount of energy from this renewable resource.

Biomass is derived from biological sources, such as corn, sugar, wood, garbage, and manure.
Though biomass is a renewable fuel, and is sometimes called a "carbon neutral" fuel, its use can
still contribute to global warming due to deforestation or urbanization of green sites. Another
concern regarding biomass as a fuel source, is that while it is renewable, it still requires a great
deal of energy to produce and uses valuable farming for the creation of fuel rather than food.

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In this activity, we learned the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources. How
do you think the consumption of these resources will impact future generations? What does this
map about the world potential for renewable energy mean to you? As we explore the regions of
the world, we will revisit these topics again.

Ultimately, it will be the implementation of a variety of renewable resources as well as widespread

conservation initiatives that will alleviate issues related to fossil fuel dependency.