Resources and Environmental ChallengesUnit # 6

Monday 1/5/2015!!! Unit objectives/vocabulary Go over directions to Hamburger, Fries and a Cola Resources Lecture Take notes Homework: Finish Hamburger, Fries and a Cola I need Volunteers…someone to bring in BIG

chocolate chip cookies, someone to bring in small cc cookies, someone to bring in toothpicks (20 bts)

UNIT TEST 1/15/2015 (Thursday)

BIG IDEA Protecting the human interests of

health, safety and resource management depends upon an understanding of natural hazards and human impart of earth systems.

World demographics Demographers (Statistical study of human populations,

especially with reference to size and density, distribution, and vital statistics) say it took until 1804 for the world to reach its first billion people, and a century more until it hit 2 billion in 1927. The twentieth century, though, saw things begin to cascade: 3 billion in 1959; 4 billion in 1974; 5 billion in 1987; 6 billion in 1998.

The U.N. (Its objectives include maintaining international peace and security, promoting human rights, fostering social and economic development, protecting the environment, and providing humanitarian aid in cases of famine, natural disaster, and armed conflict) estimates the world's population will reach 8 billion by 2025 and 10 billion by 2083. But the numbers could vary widely, depending on everything from life expectancy to access to birth control to infant mortality rates.

Resources Protect Earth’s environment!”

What does this phrase mean?

Earths environment includes all of the resources, influences, and conditions near or underneath the Earths surface.

Our goal is to make responsible decisions about the use of Earth’s resources. To accomplish this, we must know the types of resources available and how quickly they are used and renewed.

Renewable or Nonrenewable? Some of Earth’s most important

resources are basic to life. These include: air, water, land, and sunlight.

Other resources have become critical to the world economy only since the 19th century. These include energy resources such as coal and oil, and raw materials such as minerals and metal ores.

Basic Concepts Two types of resources

Renewable – something that can be replaced in nature at a rate close to its rate of use Examples?????

Plants, hydro, solar, geothermal, wind, radioactive

Nonrenewable – something that exists in a fixed amount or is used up faster than it can be replaced in nature. Examples????

Oil, coal, minerals, gas

Why would something be in a “fixed amount”?

Renewable Resource A Renewable

resource is one that can be replaces in nature at a rate close to the rate of use.

Examples include: oxygen in the air, trees in a forest, food grown in the soil, energy from the sun, and water for drinking (and a variety of other uses)

Nonrenewable Resource A Nonrenewable

resource exists in a fixed amount or is used up faster than it can be replaced by nature.

Examples include: petroleum (such as gasoline and fuel oil), coal, natural gas, and metals and nonmetals (such as sand, gravel, graphite, sulfur, gypsum and uranium).

Basic concepts Resources can be….

Direct resources – resources that go directly into the making of a product Examples???

Indirect resources – resources that are necessary to grow, ship, process or refrigerate the components of the product. Examples????

Hamburger, Fries and a Cola Read the directions carefully!!! You will lose

points if you do not follow ALL of the directions. There is not enough room to write your answers

on the worksheet, PLEASE write them on a separate piece of paper and staple it to the worksheet.

WRITE IN COMPLETE SENTENCES. What you don’t finish in class will be finished for

homework. You can work in together. Please be working on

the assignment. Please do not make me take a million BTS for not being on task.

Homework: Hamburger, Fries and a Cola concept

map and Analysis Questions (COMPLETE SENTENCES on a separate piece of paper)

You will turn in you highlighted/underlined article as well as concept map and attached analysis questions tomorrow.

Ask me for help if you need it!

Tuesday 1/6/2015 Check Hamburger, Fries and a Cola

together switch with someone near you Once we are done, turn them in to the top

bin for me to record Mining lecture – Cookie Mining Homework: Finish Cookie Mining

questions

What we mine…Ores: any material that

is mined (not grown) is in demand (there is a need) can be sold for a profit

Metallic Ores (examples?)

Aluminum, iron, silver, gold, platinum http://www.min-eng.com/commodities/metallic

/ Non-Metallic Ores (examples?)

http://www.min-eng.com/commodities/nonmetallic

/ Fuels (examples?)

Fossil fuels derived from the remains of dead organisms. Examples include coal, oil, oil shales, tar sands, natural gas, and peat. Hydrocarbons are molecules that incorporate both carbon and hydrogen.

Steps to Mining Pre-MiningBuy the Land (1872 General Mining Law)

Design the Reclamation Plan (1977 Reclamation Act)

Post Reclamation Bond

During MiningPreserve TopsoilBegin Reclamation

Steps to Mining Post-Mining: “Reclamation” ~ to return to its

natural state Preserve Original Slope Re-vegetate Recover Original Bond

How we mine:Surface Mining

Advantages-easier to get to, so less expensive

Disadvantages-visibly changes the landscape

Underground Mining Advantages-minor

visible changes to landscape

Disadvantages-dangerous, difficult to get to=expensive

Environmental Hazards Acid mine drainage-mining operations

expose sulfur-laden rock to air & water=sulfuric acid. Dissolves other toxic metals from surrounding rock.

***Continues years after mining has ceased.

Cyanide use (heap leaching)-VERY TOXIC! One tsp. of 2% solution can kill a human!

Other toxic releases (hardrock mining)-lead, mercury, arsenic

Risks of Mining for Minerals Surface mining can remove tons of soil, ore,

or rock, often creating a rock waste that supports little life

Can destroy landscape by leaving hills barren, leveling mountains, or forming enormous craters

Produces huge piles of waste rock Water that collects in open pits or runs off

from piles of waste rock can be dangerous Surface compounds in the waste can react

with the water to form sulfuric acid

Risks of Mining for Minerals Ore processing can contaminate the

waste chemically Heavy metals, dangerous to living

things, can be weathered out of waste rock

Mining can pollute water, damaging or killing life in streams and lakes

Homework: Finish Cookie Mining Questions

Wednesday 1/7/2015 CHROMEBOOKS What is Your Ecological Footprint?”

activity HOMEWORK: Complete the Ecological

Footprint activity work diligently so you can ask classmates questions

Thursday 11/8/2015 Cookie Mining Lab Homework: Finish Cookie Mining Lab

(Due Monday)

Monday 11/12/2015 Check Cooking Mining Lab questions Life Cycle of a CD/DVD Homework: Finish Life Cycle of a

CD/DVD questions

Life Cycle of a CD/DVDYou listen to them on your stereo, play them in your computer or watch movies on them. Compact Discs (CDs) and their faster cousin, Digital Video Discs (DVDs) are EVERYWHERE!!! (but not for much longer….is this good or bad???)

Only a few millimeters thick, they provide hours of entertainment and hold huge volumes of information.

Did you ever stop to think about how CDs and DVDs are made, what materials are used, or what happens to these discs when you don’t want them anymore?

Making products like CDs and DVDs consumes natural resources, produces waste, and uses energy . By learning about product life cycles, you can find out how to reduce the environmental impacts and natural resource use associated with products you use every day.

When you understand these connections, you can make better environmental choices about the products you use, and how you dispose of them.

Now let’s follow the life cycle of a CD/DVD!

Step 1: Materials Acquisition CDs and DVDs are made from many different materials, each of which has its own separate life cycle involving energy use and waste. They include:

Aluminum: the most abundant metal element in the Earth’s crust. Bauxite ore is the main source of aluminum and is extracted from the Earth.

Polycarbonate: a type of plastic, which is made from crude oil and natural gas extracted from the Earth.

Step 1: Materials Acquisition

Lacquer: made of acrylic, another type of plastic

Gold: a metal that is mined from the Earth.

Dyes: chemicals made in a laboratory, partially from petroleum products that come from the Earth.

Other materials such as water, glass, silver and nickel.

Fun FactMore than 5.5 million boxes of software go to landfills and incinerators, plus people throw away millions of music CDs each year!

Step 2 : Materials ProcessingMost mined materials must be processed before manufacturers can use them to make CDs or DVDs. For example:

Bauxite ore is processed into a substance called “alumina” by washing, crushing, dissolving, filtering, and harvesting the materials. Alumina is then turned into aluminum through a process called “smelting”. Then the metal is shaped, rolled, or made into a cast.

To make plastics, crude oil from the ground is combined with natural gas and chemicals in a manufacturing or processing plant.

Fun Fact

The entire process of stamping a CD with digital information takes between 5 and 10 seconds.

Step 3: Manufacturing The manufacturing process described here is roughly the same for both CDs and DVDs.

Plastic shape is created with the digital information

Metal is added Laquer is added Label is added

Step 3: Manufacturing/MoldingAn injection molding machine creates the core of the disc – a 1 millimeter thick piece of polycarbonate (plastic).

Poly carbonate is melted and put in a mold. With several tons of pressure, a stamper embeds tiny indentations, or pits, with digital information into the plastic mold.

A CD-player’s laser reads these pits when playing a CD.

Step 3: Manufacturing/Metal The plastic mold then go through the

“metallizer” machine, which coats the CDs with a thin metal reflective layer (usually aluminum) through a process called “sputtering.”

The playback laser reads the information off of the reflective aluminum surface.

Step 3: Manufacturing/Laquer The CD then receives a layer of lacquer

as a protective coating against scratching and corrosion.

Step 3: Manufacturing/Label Most CDs are screen printed with one to

five different colors for a decorative label. Screen printing involves the use of many materials, including stencils, squeegees, and inks.

Fun Fact In 1983, when CDs were introduced in the United States, 800,000 discs were sold. By 1990, this number had grown to close to 1 billion!

Step 4: Packaging CDs and DVDs are packaged in clear or

colored plastic cases (jewel cases) or cardboard boxes – that are then covered with plastic shrink wrap.

This packaging can be made from recycled or raw materials. For example, the plastic used can be from recycled bottles or from crude oil and natural gas extracted from the Earth and combined with chemicals.

Fun Fact

Every month approximately 100,000 pounds of CDs become obsolete (outdated, useless, or unwanted).

Step 5: Transportation/Distribution Once discs are packaged, they are

ready to be sent to distribution centers, retail outlets, or other locations.

Transportation by plane, truck, or rail requires the use of fossil fuels for energy, which contribute to climate change.

Step 6: Useful Life CDs and DVDs are created with

materials that are extremely stable. If properly stored and handled, most discs will last for decades – and probably centuries.

Certain conditions, such as high humidity, or extended periods of high temperature, rapid temperature changes and exposure to certain types of light, can damage discs and shorten their useful life.

Step 6: Useful Life Taking care of your discs by keeping

them out of direct sunlight and away from heat and water will help them last longer.

Not only will you save money, but you will also reduce the discs’ environmental impacts by preventing waste.

Step 7: Reduce, Reuse, Dispose Depending on their condition, discs can

be reused or recycled instead of thrown away.

Step 7: ReuseA good way to keep discs out of the

garbage is to reuse them: Minor scratches can be repaired by

rubbing a mild abrasive (such as toothpaste) on the non-label side of a disc in a circular motion from the center out.

Also, some commercial refinishers can inexpensively repair your CDs.

Step 7: ReuseUnwanted CDs or DVDs can be sold to

some stores, traded with friends, or donated to schools, libraries, or other organizations.

Buying used CDs and DVDs or borrowing them from the library can also help reduce the environmental impact associated with manufacturing new products.

Step 7: Recycling CDs can be recycled for use in new products. Specialized electronic recycling companies clean, grind, blend, and compound the discs into a high-quality plastic for a variety of uses, including:

Automotive industry parts Office equipment

Step 7: Recycling Raw materials to make plastics (discs are

ground into a gravel-like substance, which is sold to companies that melt it down and convert it to plastic)

Alarm boxes and panels, street lights, and electrical cable insulation.

Jewel cases

Step 7: Recycling Most CD recycling companies only

accept large stockpiles of old, damaged, or unused CDs and DVDs from businesses. A few companies will accept smaller quantities of discs mailed by individuals.

Once the recyclers receive the CDs, they separate the packaging materials, manuals, and CDs for individual recycling processes.

Step 7: Recycling You might consider contacting a CD

recycling company on behalf of your school or school district – collection CDs for reuse could be a good school or community fundraising project.

Check your local phone book or search the Internet for a list of recyclers, and be sure to have one in place before you being collection CDs for recycling.

Step 7: Recycling As with most stages of product life cycles, even recycling has environmental trade-offs.

CD and DVD recycling is not an emerging technology, which means that many companies are not yet capable of recycling these discs. So, while recycling CDs and DVDs saves natural resources, the trade-off comes from the amount of fuel and energy that’s consumed to tranpsort discs long-distances to an appropriate recycling facility.

Step 7: Disposal Only dispose of your discs when you

have no other choice. Always try to share, donate, or trade your discs or drop them off at an appropriate recycling center.

CDs and DVDs that are thrown away waste energy and result in lost valuable resources.

You constantly make decisions about buying products. One of your decisions probably involves weighing how much you want a product against how much it costs. The point of this activity is to provide information to help you become a more environmentally aware consumer by describing the materials and energy consumption required to make CDs and DVDs.

You should factor this information into your buying decisions and understand that nearly all of your choices have some environmental trade-offs. You might also want to consider whether the information you think you need on disc is actually available on the Internet. If it is, you might not need to buy the disc at all!Thinking about these issues will make you a more informed consumer and will help you make decisions that help to protect and preserve our environment.

For a product to come into existence, it must be designed. And that design can have as much of an impact on the environment as any other step in a product’s life cycle. For example: designers can plan for a product to be easily made from recycled materials, thus reducing the need to mine or gather raw materials.

Most industries, including high-tech industries, have developed voluntary standards that many manufacturers follow when designing and manufacturing new products.

These standards help make products as environmentally sound as is technologically possible.

These standards also change as rapidly developing new technologies become available.

Homework Life Cycle of a DVD/CD

Tuesday 1/13/2015 Check Life Cycle of a CD/DVD Resources Lecture Homework: Study for Test Thursday

Energy Resources Water, wind, and even

humans can supply energy for work.

Fuels also provide energy. In the past, the major

source of energy was wood. The sources of energy and

the demand for it have changed dramatically in the past 150 years.

Nonrenewable Energy Sources About 7% of energy use today comes

from renewable sources. The remaining 93% comes from

nonrenewable sources, including: Coal Petroleum Natural gas Nuclear fission

Fossil Fuels Coal, petroleum, and natural gas are

called fossil fuels because they are formed from the remains of organisms that lived millions of years ago.

The burning of fossil fuels releases the energy stored in them. Fossil fuels are nonrenewable because they are being used up millions of times faster than they are forming.

Coal Used primarily in power plants to generate

electricity. Also important in the manufacture of steel

and as a raw material in chemical processes. Deep deposits are worked in underground

mines. Shallow deposits are dug up in surface mines

called strip mines. Least expensive of the fossil fuels.

Coal Formed from materials such as ferns,

mosses, and parts of trees. Peat – lightly compressed mass of plant

remains. Lignite – compressed peat. Bituminous (or soft) – compressed

lignite. Anthracite – compressed bituminous.

Types of Coal Coal contains carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.

As the organic material decays, it releases hydrogen and oxygen.

Peat has the lowest content of carbon. As the coal is compressed more and more, the carbon content rises.

The higher the percentage of carbon, the greater the amount of energy released when the coal is burned.

Peat = low energy Anthracite = high energy

Petroleum (Oil) A liquid that is also composed of organic

materials. Is mainly a mixture of liquid

hydrocarbons (compounds of hydrogen and carbon).

Recovered by drilling wells into oil-bearing rock.

Only about 60% of the oil in a given well can be pumped out of it.

Petroleum (Oil) Formed by slow chemical changes in

organic materials buried under sand and clay in shallow coastal waters.

As the sediments were compacted, liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons were forced into pores and cracks of nearby sandstones or limestones.

Today’s deposits were sealed underground by layers of virtually impermeable rock.

Natural Gas A mixture of methane and other

hydrocarbon gases. Often occurs with petroleum. The pressure of natural gas overlying

petroleum helps bring the petroleum to the surface.

Other Fossil Fuels Oil shales and tar

sands. When heated, oil

shales release a petroleum vapor that can be condensed into liquid oil.

The spaces between grains of tar sands are filled with the dried residue of petroleum. Oil can be removed from these sands.

•Oil from these 2 sources is estimated to be 50% greater than the remaining oil reserves.•However, the recovery processes are too expensive at present.

Uranium The metallic element most commonly

used as a fuel. When atoms of a certain isotope of

uranium are hit with neutrons, atomic fission occurs, and energy is released.

Atomic fission is what takes place in our nuclear power plants.

Uranium A coolant pumped through the reactor is heated

by the energy released by fission. The hot coolant is used to convert water to

steam. The steam moves turbines, which generates

electricity. Fission of 1 gram of Uranium releases as much

energy as 3 tons of coal or 14 barrels of oil. Fifth most important source

of energy behind oil, natural gas, coal, and water power.

Renewable Energy Resources Four of the most widely used sources of

renewable energy include: Water Wind The sun (solar) Geothermal energy

Water The major use of water power today is

to produce electricity (hydroelectric power).

Most efficient use of producing electricity, because the turbines that power the electrical generators are turned directly by moving water.

Tides, the rise and fall of Earth’s oceans, can also be used to generate electricity.

Wind Can be captured by a windmill, which

can be used to generate electricity. Usually requires a number of grouped

(several hundred) windmills to provide enough electricity for a number of homes.

Windmill farms exist in Hawaii, California, Texas and New Hampshire.

Windmills are becoming more efficient.

The Sun Solar power is used to provide

heat and electricity. “Passive” and “active” systems

exist. Passive solar heating systems

are designed to collect and store solar energy.

Active solar heating systems are designed to collect solar energy that will then be distributed throughout a building/home as heat, or to heat water.

The Sun Solar cells (photovoltaic cells) have

been used to generate electricity in spacecraft since the start of the space age.

Solar cells convert light into electricity.

Geothermal Energy Heat from the Earth’s interior that is

converted to electrical energy when steam or hot water from below Earth’s surface is piped to a power plant to run a generator

Also used in homes for heating and cooking Usually found in volcanic areas, 22 countries

around the world have geothermal plants The largest source of geothermal power in

the world is found in Geysers, CA

Risks of Nonrenewable Energy The fission process used in nuclear

reactors produces dangerously radioactive by-products that must be stored away from living things for thousands of years

No satisfactory way of safely storing or disposing of nuclear waste has been found

Nuclear reactor accidents can cause people to become ill or die from radiation

Risks of Nonrenewable Energy Burning fossil fuels releases pollutants

into the air that can irritate our nose, throat, and lungs

Fossil fuel air pollutants contribute to acid rain

Risks of Nonrenewable Energy Acid rain can damage buildings, reduce

forest growth, harm crops, and kill or injure plant and animal life in lakes and streams

Oil spills pollute soil and water and kill wildlife

Protected lands and wildlife are threatened by searching for additional oil and natural gas sources

Risks of Renewable Energy In general, these resources have a less

damaging impact on the environment. However, each type is limited in some way. Water (hydroelectric) power can only be

used where dams can be built for water storage

Wind power can only be used in areas with strong, steady winds

Windmills can interfere with television and radio reception

Risks of Renewable Energy Windmill farms need a lot of land Windmills can interfere with bird

migration A reliable and efficient method of

storing windmill energy needs to be found

Similar problems of storage and reliability affect solar power

Risks of Renewable Energy Few places in the world have the hot

bedrock near the surface that geothermal energy requires

Chemical-rich, superheated water produced by geothermal energy can pollute lakes and streams

Cave-ins can occur when hot water drawn from the ground is not returned to the ground

Wednesday 1/13/2015 Unit 6: Resources and Environmental

Challenges JEOPARDY! Winner gets +5 points to test!

Thursday 1/14/2015 Unit 6 Test: Resources and

Environmental Challenges