Conservation

VocabularyHighlight the following terms in your outline:

1. Acid precipitation

2. Erosion

3. Fossil fuel

4. Geothermal energy

5. Greenhouse effect

6. Hazardous waste

7. Hydroelectric power

8. Natural resource

9. Nonrenewable resource10. Nuclear energy11. Ozone depletion12. Petroleum13. Pollutant14. Recycling15. Renewable resource

Conservation

The official supervision of rivers, forests, and other natural resources in order to preserve and protect them through prudent management.

The careful utilization of a natural resource in order to prevent depletion.

What If Everyone Cared?

parts of the environment that are useful or necessary for living organisms to survive

Natural Resources

A natural resource that is constantly recycled or replaced by nature

Renewable Resources

Natural resources that are used up more quickly than they can be replaced

Non-renewable Resources

coal, oil, and natural gas are nonrenewable energy resourcesthat form in Earth’s crust over very long periods of time.

Fossil Fuels

used to help conserve fossil fuels.

Alternative Energy

energy from falling water used to generate electricity

Hydroelectric power

wind turns the blades of a turbine, which powers an electric generator.

Wind

the fission of uranium atoms generates nuclear energy that is used to produce electricity.

Nuclear power

uses geothermal energy from the heat in earth’s crust to generate electricity.

Geothermal power

Captured in photovoltaic cells, which turn sunlight into electric current, or in materials that retain heat.

Solar Energy

How Photovoltaic Cells Work?

What will the Earth look like in 2050?

Acid precipitationA rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it possesses elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). It can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and infrastructure. Acid rain is caused by emissions of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.

Erosionthe process by which soil and rock are removed from the Earth's surface by natural processes such as wind or water flow, and then transported and deposited in other locations.

Greenhouse effecta process by which thermal radiation from a planetary surface is absorbed by atmospheric greenhouse gases, and is re-radiated in all directions. Since part of this re-radiation is back towards the surface and the lower atmosphere, it results in an elevation of the average surface temperature above what it would be in the absence of the gases

Hazardous waste

waste that poses substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment.

Ozone DepletionDescribes two distinct but related phenomena observed since the late 1970s: a steady decline of about 4% per decade in the total volume of ozone in Earth's stratosphere (the ozone layer), and a much larger springtime decrease in stratospheric ozone over Earth's polar regions. The latter phenomenon is referred to as the ozone hole. In addition to these well-known stratospheric phenomena, there are also springtime polar tropospheric ozone depletion events.

Pollutant

a waste material that pollutes air, water or soil, and is the cause of pollution.

RecyclingA rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning t processing used materials (waste) into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions hat it possesses elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). It can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and infrastructure. Acid rain is caused by emissions of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.

Review

I. ResourcesA. Natural resources—parts of the environment that

are useful or necessary for living organisms to survive

1. A natural resource that is constantly recycled or replaced by nature is a

renewable resource.

2. Natural resources that are used up more quickly than they can be replaced are

called nonrenewable resources; for example petroleum takes hundreds of millions of years to form.

B. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas are nonrenewable energy resourcesthat form in Earth’s crust over very long periods of time.

C. Alternative energy sources can be used to help conserve fossil fuels.

1. Hydroelectric power—energy from falling water used to generate electricity

2. Wind—wind turns the blades of a turbine, which powers an electric generator.

3. Nuclear power—the fission of uranium atoms generates nuclear energy that is used to produce electricity.

4. Geothermal power plants use geothermal energy from the heat in Earth’s crust to generate electricity.

5. Solar energy can be captured in photovoltaic cells, which turn sunlight into electric current, or in materials that

retain heat.

“Learning About Natural Resources”

Resource Worksheet Answers1. Renewable

2. Petroleum

3. Nuclear

4. Hydroelectric

5. Geothermal

6. Fossil Fuels

7. Photovoltaic

8. Nonrenewable

9. Solar

10. Natural Resources

Really Hot Stuff• Read the passages on handout and answer

the questions that follow.• Write a paragraph explaining the

advantages and disadvantages of living in the region described in the reading.