Unit 3 Notes - ENVS 1000_ Intro to Environmental Science PDF

InQuizitive 2 - Urbanization (Week 15): Deontological ○ Dolphins have intrinsic value and are worthy of protection outside of their usefulness to humans. ○ Every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings. ○ The government...

InQuizitive 2 - Urbanization (Week 15): Deontological ○ Dolphins have intrinsic value and are worthy of protection outside of their usefulness to humans. ○ Every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings. ○ The government has a duty to assure for all Americans safe, healthful, productive, and aesthetically and culturally pleasing surroundings. Utilitarian ○ The purpose of conservation: The greatest good to the greatest number for the longest time. ○ The government shall attain the widest range of beneficial uses of the environment without degradation, risk to health or safety, or other undesirable and unintended consequences. ○ Failing to take steps to address climate change is wrong because the consequences of this failure will cause more total harm in the future than the benefits gained in the present by failing to act. "Tragedy of the Commons" refers to a situation where individuals, acting in their own self-interest, over-exploit a shared resource, leading to its depletion and ultimately harming everyone who relies on it, because no one has a personal incentive to conserve the resource Process of policy ○ Someone with this type of ethics would feel animals exist only as food for people. ○ anthropocentrism This approach only considers how actions that will affect the environment will affect people. ○ anthropocentrism Someone with this type of ethics would be against building a dam since it would block the natural flow of water in the river. ○ ecocentrism This approach considers protecting all species of life because all life has intrinsic value. ○ biocentrism  Someone with this type of ethics may be a member of an animal rights group to protect all living creatures. ○ biocentrism This approach is concerned with all the living and nonliving components of an ecosystem. ○ ecocentrism Deontological ethics assesses whether actions are right or wrong by establishing general rules in the form of duties that ought to be upheld and rights that ought to be protected. This type of ethics often emphasizes the intrinsic value, or the value apart from its usefulness to others, of what needs to be protected. ○ Deontological Ethics assesses whether actions are right or wrong by establishing duties that should be upheld and rights that should be protected often emphasizes intrinsic value of whatever is to be protected ○ Utilitarianism typically assesses consequences by calculating total benefits and harms experienced by those affected often expressed in terms of providing the greatest good for the greatest number ○ Efficiency gains that lower the price of a good often inspire new uses of that good in ways that increase consumption. This is known as the Jevons paradox. policy governing water pollution ○ Clean Water Act pollution control policy by which the EPA identifies and prioritizes hazardous waste sites for cleanup ○ Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act policy establishing the highest level of protection for federal lands designated as areas where “the earth and community of life are untrammeled by man” ○ Wilderness Act policy governing solid and hazardous waste disposal ○ Resource Conservation and Recovery Act key piece of environmental policy requiring an Environmental Impact Statement detailing environmental impact of federal actions ○ National Environmental Policy Act Which of the following examples are considered ecosystem services? ○ Correct Answer(s) wetlands filtering water trees on a riverbank shading the river and keeping the water cool ○ Incorrect Answer(s) trout fished from a river corn harvested from a farm timber from sustainably logging a forest  Environmental policy in the United States falls into two broad issue areas. What are the two broad areas that environmental policy focuses on? ○ Correct Answer(s) natural resources Pollution ○ Incorrect Answer(s) Industrialization Urbanization wildlife and endangered species Which of the following federal laws established the highest level of environmental protection for certain designated federal lands by declaring that humans are merely visitors in these places where the community of life is to remain untrammeled? ○ Wilderness act of 1964 Ecocentrism: This view considers the living and nonliving components of ecosystems. If you are considering the nitrogen cycle as important as the people and animals living in the savanna, you have an ecocentric concern as described in this scenario. Toxicologists measure risks by identifying the dose required to kill 50% of the exposed population. This threshold can vary depending on the chemical. If a chemical does not easily break down in the environment, it has high persistence. A group of chemicals that are resistant to breakdown through chemical reactions, biological processes, or exposure to sunlight are called persistent organic pollutants and include DDT and PCBs. Although use of these chemicals has been curtailed or banned in the United States and other countries, they remain in the environment because they remain in the soil and can be passed up the food chain as organisms consume one another. Chapter 2 - Ethics, Economics, and Policy - Jazmin Ricks - Water Center (Week 15): InQuizitive 16 - Urbanization (Week 13): Which of the following are factors that contribute to suburban sprawl? ○ Contributing Factors the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 a lack of policies or planning for land use at the regional or metropolitan level consumer culture ○ Not Contributing Factors the decrease in the US population after World War II the informal economy A new office complex is designed with rooftop gardens and ground-level rain gardens. ○ green infrastructure  Planners design a new development with a wide tree-lined buffer between the sidewalk and the street as well as short blocks in a grid pattern. ○ pedestrian-oriented development An office building produces more energy than it uses and is able to collect and treat all the water it uses on site. ○ living building A planning effort promotes several blocks of development that combine housing, shops, restaurants, grocery stores, and offices. ○ mixed-use area Planners of a new multi-unit residential development incorporate bus and light-rail routes and stations into the infrastructure. ○ transit-oriented development Which one of the following policies in the United States facilitated the expansion of suburban sprawl? ○ Federal loan guarantees and income tax deductions for interest on mortgages Which of the following statements accurately describe the growth of urban areas? ○ Accurately Describe the Growth of Urban Areas Over half of urban growth comes from people migrating from rural areas. The world’s urban population is expected to double by 2050. ○ Does Not Accurately Describe the Growth of Urban Areas Most urban population growth occurs in developed countries like the United States. In the 19th century, more people lived in urban areas than in rural areas for the first time in human history. Planner’s dilemma example: ○ A slum redevelopment project that is part of a regional housing and transportation plan fails because it did not take into account the key interests of the local communities affected The city of Urbantown added two more lanes to the highway around the city to reduce traffic. Initially, traffic congestion decreased but over time, congestion and traffic increased again. This phenomenon is known as induced traffic. Urbantown then built a subway system to increase the variety in the modal split in the area. The denser the city, the higher the use of mass transportation. Green roofs are where plants are grown on top of buildings and made into park-like retreats for workers. This can also help improve the heating and cooling efficiency of the building. Bioswales and rain gardens help absorb stormwater while also providing green space. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a certification system that incentivizes builders to incorporate features to reduce a building’s environmental impact. These are examples of green infrastructure, which incorporates green spaces into urban spaces. Chapter 16 - Urbanization (Week 13): Infrastructure: physical structures and facilities such as roads, buildings, and parking lots Urban transition: term referring to the trend of populations becoming more urban and less rural Urban area: a place where large numbers of people live together in relatively dense settlements and work in nonagricultural jobs Rural area: a place where populations are more spread out geographically and more reliant on agricultural employment Urban penalty: the human health problems associated with urban living ○ Disease and crime Urban density: the number of residents per unit of space Economy of scale: a situation in which the per capita cost for services decreases as a result of the increasing scale of operations If a person moves to a larger city w twice population size, that person earns 15% more income, partially due to more opportunities Slum or informal settlement: an urban area characterized by substandard housing, a lack of formal property ownership arrangements, inadequate urban services, and high rates of poverty ○ Are home to nearly 1 billion people (expected to double by 2030) Bright lights syndrome: a perception that cities are places of greater opportunity, excitement, and freedom to pursue all aspects of life Informal economy: small entrepreneurial ventures that operate beyond the reach of government regulation and taxation ○ Entrepreneurial ventures such as small manufacturers, service providers, and street vendors hat operate beyond the reach of government regulation and taxation and don’t have formally trained personnel or access to credit from banks Metropolitan area/metropolis: a cluster of densely populated suburbs and cities ○ Frequently identified with the names of the multiple boundaries that they span Dallas-fort worth Washing baltimore Megalopolis: a chain of roughly adjacent metropolitan areas, such as the region from boston to dc A metropolitan area can grow even as the central city or cities within it are shrinking ○ Ex: the population of the city of baltimore declined by almost one-third (1970-2010) while the population of the baltimore-washington area grew by more than 2/3s during the same period One use zones: a distinct zone, often in suburbs, that serves one particular purpose ○ To grasp variations in residential development Dwellings units per acre  Floor-to-area ratio (FAR) Compares the total floor space of a building with the area of land on which it is built ○ 1 story building that covers an entire lot would have a FAR of 1 ○  Induced traffic: increased traffic and congestion caused by adding lanes to existing roads and highways. Modal split: the percentage of travelers in an area using a particular type of transportation to get to work Smart growth: principles of urban planning that emphasize inclusive community processes and aim to reduce a suburban sprawl and other negative environmental impacts Transit-oriented development (TOD): use of design strategies that integrate public transportation and land use pattern in more sustainable and resilient ways Pedestrian-oriented development (POD): use of design strategies that integrate pedestrian travel and land-use patterns in more sustainable and resilient ways InQuizitive 6 - Urbanization (Week 13): Youth bulge: prolonged periods of low mortality with high fertility and explosive population growth Sort these statements about Earth’s carrying capacity for humans by whether each is true or false. ○ True Statement(s) Some experts have estimated that Earth could support as many as 15 billion or 20 billion people if we look at bare survival. Increasing the carrying capacity of Earth for humans has been done, but it has come with costs. ○ False Statement(s) The question of how many people Earth can support is only a function of our population. If the objective is a more comfortable lifestyle, like that enjoyed by many Americans, most experts agree that we are still under our planetary limits. mortality transition ○ improved access to food and clean water ○ improvements in medical care and sanitation fertility transition ○ an increase in educational and employment opportunities for women ○ increasing access to and use of birth control ○ a phase that coincides with a demographic window stability transition ○ low birthrates matching low death rates Since the 1940s, demographers have observed that a drop in infant mortality caused by better health care, sanitation, and water quality helps drive a decline in fertility. The process of development and industrialization is also associated with urbanization. Cities can grow by natural increase, where their birthrates exceed their death rates. But they can also grow as people migrate into cities from rural areas. A high level of female literacy is associated with better family health and nutrition, enhanced life expectancy, and lower infant mortality—all factors associated with lower TFR.  Which of the following would increase the total human population and which would decrease the total human population? Consider only the condition described as the factor changing the population. Increase ○ decline in the crude death rate ○ advances in health and medical science Decrease ○ increase in the crude death rate ○ decline in total fertility rate Chapter 6 - Human Population (Week 13): I = PAT ○ Population ○ Affluence affluence is measured as gross domestic product (GDP)—a measure of the total value of goods produced and services provided in a country in a given year—per person in a country. ○ technology Demographer: a social scientist who studies the characteristics and consequences of human population growth There was waste accumulation, poor sanitation, and rapidly spreading outbreaks of diseases such as typhoid and cholera 2 historic population crashes the great famine and bubonic plague (black death) Total fertility rate (TFR): the average number of children a woman would have in her reproductive years in a given population (15 to 40 years) ○ Demographers use TFR rather than birth rate (births per 1000 people) because it is not influenced by the age structure of a population and focuses on birth rate among women in the population that can produce offspring ○ Lower TFR is typically associated with a rising standard of living and more investment of resources per child ○ Payouts and incentives do help the welfare of children and families, they have not been shown to increase TFRs above replacement rate ○ Factors that reduced the TFR in the first place are hard to change and will continue to hold down the TFRs in the countries ○ A challenge in decline in TFR is the declining number of younger workers to support health and pension systems designed for retired adults Replacement fertility: a TFR of 2.1 children which is the rate at which the population does not grow or decline ○ The 2 children replace their parents, extra fraction accounts for children who will not survive long after their birth or die without themselves producing offspring ○ Higher above 2.1 the higher population growth  ○ The lower the more the population will shrink ○ Developed countries typically at or below 2 Crude death rate: the total number of deaths per year per 1000 people If population growth rate is 0, then the population will remain the same If everyone lived like a north american, we would need 4 earths to support the population demographic transition: decrease in the birth and death rates of a population linked to improvements in basic human living conditions, the availability of modern birth control technologies, and economic growth ○ Stabilization effect: a demographic transition occurs in three phases: a mortality transition, a fertility transition, and a stability transition → the end result of which is low death and birth rates Mortality transition: a period that occurs as access to food, clean water, and medical care improves and the country’s death rate declines Fertility transition: a period when the population growth slows because the birth rate decreases, even though the death rate remains low ○ Younger generation has a lower fertility rate by having their first children later in their lives and limiting their family sizes with birth control ○ The population is dominated by people of working age, so the percentage of the population that is dependent, either because they are too young or too old to work, will be relatively small  Demographic window: a time when a country’s population is dominated by people of working age ○ The share of the population younger than 15 years is less than 30%, and the share older than 64 years is less than 15% ○ This is the time where countries achieve tremendous economic growth Growth associated with improved living conditions and reduce fertility rates Improvements in basic health and nutritional conditions Better educational and employment opportunities for women Provision of social security programs for the elderly, and urbanization Stability transition: a period when low birth rates match low death rates Youth bulge: a prolonged period of low mortality with high fertility, leading to explosive population growth and a very large population of young people ○ Leading to more crime, more of uneducated individuals, civil unrest Social and economic benefits of an aging population ○ Crime rates decrease and fewer services such as education and health care are need for children Saves money that could be used for the elderly Urbanization is associated with lower fertility rates Two ways of city growth: ○ Natural increase: a process in which population growth due to birth rate exceeds death rates ○ Can also grow as people migrate into cities from rural areas  Literate life expectancy: the average number of years in one’s life a person has the ability to read and write ○ Lower number tends to reflect shorter life spans and less literacy, perhaps due to less access to health care and education ○ Gender can also play a role Women empowerment → lower fertility If the average age that women in the region have their first child increases just 2 years, from 20 to 22, the projected population in 2100 dips by 9% If women in the region do not have any unintended pregnancies, the projected population will be 30% lower Cairo consensus: an agreement saying that demographic and development goals can only be met when the rights and opportunities of men and women are balanced Impact = population * affluence * technology ○ Affluence usually measure as gross domestic product (GDP) ○  Ecological footprint analysis: an analysis that tries to tally the area of land (and water) required for each category of consumption and waste discharge to make human consumption impacts more visible ○ Total carbon emissions are the biggest differentiator to a country’s overall ecological footprint Chapter 14 InQuizitive - Energy Alternatives (Week 12): Geothermal energy uses heat from beneath Earth’s surface on a large scale to power a steam turbine and generate electricity. Like hydropower, the potential for this type of energy production depends on location. The power plants depend on sources of hot water such as hot springs and geothermal vents. photovoltaic (PV) solar panel ○ a panel that produces an electric charge when it is exposed to sunlight concentrated solar thermal (CST) plant ○ a solar power technology that captures heat using huge mirrors to focus sunlight toward liquid-filled pipes or a centrally located "power tower" energy storage battery ○ systems that can store energy generated by solar panels for use after the Sun sets ○ Which of the following are sources of alternative energy? Correct Answer(s) wind power solar power geothermal power Incorrect Answer(s) natural gas Coal a device that creates an electric current by stripping electrons from hydrogen molecules ○ fuel cell small systems of energy distribution designed for hundreds or thousands of energy users ○ microgrid combined heat and power systems ○ cogeneration energy used by devices that are plugged in but not in use ○ vampire power a process where the nuclei of atoms are split ○ Fission Which of the following is one way to use energy more efficiently? ○ Making lighter vehicles Both wind and solar power are nondepletable, nonpolluting sources of electricity. Other sources of energy alternatives to fossil fuels include hydropower, which is power drawn  from moving water, nuclear power from splitting atoms, and geothermal power from tapping into the heat below Earth’s surface. Which of the following is an example of a regulatory government policy for shaping energy transitions? ○ Energy portfolio standards Which of the following technologies is the leading fossil fuel alternative in terms of global energy consumption? ○ Hydropower Sort the following statements by whether they are advantages or disadvantages to using wind power. ○ Advantage(s) to Using Wind Power After wind turbines are constructed, they do not pollute water or the atmosphere. Wind energy is freely accessible and nondepletable. ○ Disadvantage(s) to Using Wind Power Wind power can harm some wildlife. Wind power results in variable generation of electricity. Which of the following statements about microgrid systems are accurate? ○ Accurate Statement(s) A microgrid system can get power from a mix of power sources. A microgrid system can prioritize power to essential facilities such as hospitals if a disruption to the larger grid occurs. ○ Inaccurate Statement(s) A microgrid system cannot connect to larger electric grids. A microgrid system is only suitable for small communities. wind turbines ○ bird and bat kills from spinning blades Hydropower ○ reliance on dams that obstruct river flows and flood large areas of land photovoltaic (PV) panels ○ use of hazardous heavy metals and acids to manufacture specially treated silicon that produces an electric current nuclear power ○ radioactive waste concentrated solar thermal (CST) plants ○ requirement of a water supply to produce steam with solar energy Which of the following are characteristics of fuel-cell electric vehicles (EVs) that distinguish them from battery EVs? ○ Correct Answer(s) Fuel-cell EVs emit only water. Fuel-cell EVs do not contain a battery that needs to be recharged. ○ Incorrect Answer(s) Fuel-cell EVs are limited by a lack of refueling stations.  The systems used to store and manage fuel for fuel-cell EVs are simple and inexpensive. Are nuclear fuel power plants more efficient than fossil fuel power plants? Why or why not? ○ Correct Answer(s) Yes, the volume of overall waste associated with nuclear power is many thousands of times less than the waste stemming from fossil fuels. Yes, while 1 kilogram of coal in a power plant can power a 100-watt lightbulb for 4 days, 1 kilogram of nuclear fuel could power the same lightbulb for 140 years. ○ Incorrect Answer(s) No, coal or natural gas can generate as much power as the same amount of nuclear fuel, so fossil fuel power plants and nuclear fuel power plants are equally efficient. No, coal is more readily available than uranium, so nuclear power plants require far more energy to function than do coal-fueled power plants. A wind turbine machine uses the flowing air to turn large blades on a shaft, which in turn powers a generator and creates electricity. The electricity generated in this manner is called variable generation, as the generating capacity of the source changes according to the time of day and weather conditions Biofuel: ethanol The most common technology for large-scale energy storage is called pumped hydro. It uses electricity (typically from a hydroelectric dam) to pump water uphill to a reservoir when energy is plentiful, which allows water to be run back downhill through hydropower turbines to generate electricity when energy is scarce. ○ true Chapter 14 - Energy Alternatives (Week 12): Other alternatives: wind, solar, hydroelectric, geothermal, and nuclear power Wind turbines: a machine that uses flowing air to turn large blades that in turn power a generator and creates electricity ○ Provides just over 2% of global energy consumption ○ The sun is the ultimate source of wind energy (the uneven heating of the atmosphere) ○ With over 67,000 turbines in 44 states, wind generates about 8% of electric power in the US Variable generation: a power source with generating capacity that changes according to the time of day, weather conditions, or other factors Photovoltaic (PV) solar panel: a panel that produces an electric charge when it is exposed to sunlight ○ Uses sunlight to produce an electric current  ○ Concentrated solar thermal (CST) plant: a solar power technology that captures heat using huge mirrors to focus sunlight toward liquid-filled pipes or a centrally located “power tower” ○ Solar is 1% of global energy consumption 14.2 what are other energy alternatives? ○ Hydropower: power generate when water is used to spin turbines and generate electricity Constructing dams and reservoirs Can destruct local ecosystem Run-of-the-river system (does not hold back or store water) but diverts some of the water flowing downstream through a pipe or canal that leads to a turbine Can still contribute to greenhouse gas emissions  Flood large vegetated areas, vegetation decomposes Dams are made of concrete ○ Nuclear power: power generated when the nuclei of atoms are split, releasing a large amount of energy 4% of energy consumed world wide Reliable, consistent source of energy ○ Fission: a process where the nuclei of atoms are split, releasing a very large amount of energy ○ ○ Geothermal power: power generated by heat from below Earth’s surface Relies on wells that bring how water and gases to the surface to turn a steam turbine Depends on location ○ Ethanol: a type of biofuel made of alcohol and produced by fermenting sugars in plants such as corn or sugarcane, it is often blended with gasoline ○ Electric vehicle (EV): a vehicle powered by an electric motor using a magnetic field to generate motion ○ Fuel cells: a device that creates an electric current by stripping electrons from hydrogen molecules Chapter 13 InQuizitive - Fossil Fuels (Week 12): Coal is found in underground deposits. Coal can be extracted using mines or by mountaintop removal, where the earth overlaying the coal deposit is removed. Mountaintop removal leads to several environmental problems, including smothering land and streams with the removed rock and dirt and polluting streams with acidic water. How did government actions help lead to the rise of fossil fuels as a primary energy source? ○ Correct Answer(s) by taxing competing products more than new fuel sources by regulating the use of certain traditional fuels by providing public goods such as roads, power lines, and pipes by providing tax breaks to industries that used new fuel sources ○ Incorrect Answer(s) by denying patents and loans to inventors of more efficient machines that used fossil fuels The world currently relies on fossil fuels for most of its energy. Two of these fossil fuels, oil and natural gas, are both known as a hydrocarbon because of their composition. The third, coal, is primarily composed of carbon. Often, oil and natural gas are found in the same deposit, as both are a product of the pressurization and heating over millions of years of incompletely decayed marine organisms. Which of the following is an example of a provision of a public good by the government that facilitated the expanded use of fossil fuels? ○ The federal highway system Burning fossil fuels produces greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change and other air pollutants. Their extraction also directly degrades the environment, either through the destruction of land during mining practices such as mountaintop removal or through leaks and waste products. The new extraction technology of fracking has enabled the increased extraction from unconventional reserves. Categorize the following as either fossil fuels or non-fossil fuels. ○ Fossil Fuels ○ coal ○ natural gas ○ oil Non-fossil Fuels ○ sunlight ○ vegetable oil ○ water ○ charcoal ○ wood Which of the following historical details about James Watt’s development of the steam engine are correct? ○ Accurate Historical Details Watt’s steam engine enabled coal mines to extract more coal with less energy.  Watt offered to lease his steam engine to customers and maintained ownership of the machines himself. Watt was paid one-third of the estimated energy savings the steam engine customers would gain from using his devices. ○ Inaccurate Historical Details Watt’s steam engine lowered the energy inputs required to extract coal, thereby reducing energy consumption. Watt sold his steam engines outright to mine owners to save them upfront costs. Which of the following statements are true of hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking? ○ Correct Answer(s) The practice of injecting wastewater into the ground during fracking can cause earthquakes. Fracking has allowed the extraction of oil from unconventional sources. Fracking uses a process that includes horizontal drilling and pumping a mixture of water, sand, and chemicals into a well to release oil. Fracking is used to extract both oil and natural gas. ○ Incorrect Answer(s) Fracking has led to increased CO2 emissions. Fracking has increased the use of coal and decreased the use of natural gas. Which of the following could you use to heat your home or cook your meals if relying on biofuels? ○ Biofuels tree branches whale oil cow dung charcoal ○ Not Biofuels steam engines waterwheels coal briquets windmills Match each description related to fossil fuel extraction and processing with the term it defines. ○ beneficiation plant site where extracted coal is crushed and washed ○ coal ash a hazardous residue from coal-fired power plants ○ mountaintop removal process whereby material above coal deposits is removed so that the coal beneath can be scooped out ○ enhanced oil recovery  process that condenses carbon dioxide and injects it underground to force oil deposits to the surface ○ carbon capture and storage process of diverting carbon dioxide exhaust from power plants and injecting it underground ○ drilling rig a device that extracts oil or gas Wood, sticks, leaves, and coal are all NOT examples of biofuels rather than fossil fuels. Place the following energy sources in the order of those that were harnessed earliest by humans over the course of history to those harnessed latest. ○ draft animals, water wheels, windmills, coal for steam engines, nuclear fission for electricity Chapter 13 - Fossil Fuels (Week 12): fossil fuels: fuel formed from living organisms ○ 80% of all energy used to power modern lifestyle comes from fossil fuels ○ Stages: extraction at wells and mines → distribution by pipelines, trucks, and trains → production at refineries and combustion in power plants, factories, and vehicles 13.1 what are fossil fuels, and how important are they today? ○ Hydrocarbons: material made of strands of hydrogen and carbon molecules derived from ancient, solar energy-capturing photosynthesis Ex: oil and natural gas Began to form more than 100 million years ago as microscopic organisms (often plankton commonly found in oceans and lakes) that drew on the Sun’s energy. As they died, some were buried under sediment and couldn’t decompose - energy stored in the dead bodies transformed into liquid known as oil (or crude oil) and a gaseous methane-heavy fuel known as natural gas ○ Oil: a liquid fossil fuel that formed from plants and microscopic animals that lived millions of years ago ○ Natural gas: a gaseous fossil fuel that formed deep beneath earth’s surface and contains primaril methane Coal: a solid carbon-based fossil fuel formed from ancient tropical swamps that were buried and subjected to immense pressure over millions of years  ○ Reserves: a known resource of a fossil fuel that can be economically accessed with current technology at current prices (coal, oil, natural gas) All non-renewable (based on how fast we extract them) Conventional reserve: an easily obtainable deposit of fossil fuels Unconventional reserve: a difficult to extract deposit of fossil fuels 13.2 have we always used fossil fuels?  ○ ○ Biofuel: recently living matter or by-products of its decomposition used as an energy source (animal fat, wood, charcoal, etc) Plant based fossil fuels were the most common fuels burned: Woody materials from tree branches, roots, leavers, shrubs, and dry gasses Charcoal: a biofuel refined by cooking piles of wood in a low-oxygen environment ○ Cleaner-burning fuel and has more energy by weight than does wood Ex: wood can cause air pollution resulted in deforestation, erosion, and fuel shortages Human energy history: ○ Power: the rate at which work is done, measured as energy flow over time Measured in joules per second (Watts (W)) Human labor is roughly 100 watts per person Machine measure in kilowatts (kW) or thousand of watts (1 kW = 10 people) ○ Productivity: the amount of inputs (ex. Labor time) required to attain a certain level of output (milled grain) 13.3 what drove the rise of fossil fuels?  ○ ○ Inferior good: something consumed because people cannot afford what they prefer Ex: coal originally when it was cheaper than firewood (when the king used it, it wasn’t necessarily considered inferior anymore) ○ Proven reserve: the amount of a resources that can be profitable accessed with current technology at current prices ○ Jevons paradox: a finding that efficiency gains in the use of a resource, which can cause consumption of the resource to rise ○ Public good: a thing that cannot be profitably produced because it’s difficult to exclude nonpaying customers from receiving the benefits 13.4 what are the environmental impacts of obtaining and using fossil fuels? ○ Coal was the first fossil fuel widely used by humans ○ Mountaintop removal: a mining process commonly used to extract coal, where entire mountaintops are removed to scoop out the underlying resource Waste is deposited in adjacent valleys ○ Secondary extraction: water is injected to increase pressure, forcing more oil to the surface ○ tertiary extraction: steam is injected to enable the oil to flow more easily from the rock into the well  ○ Hydraulic fracturing (fracking): a process using a mixture of water, sand, and chemicals pumped at high pressure into an oil or gas well to fracture the rock and release the fuel locked up inside ○ Tar sand: a type of those loose-grained rock deposit bonded with oil Extracting and refining oil from tar sands is a more energy- and water-intensive process than that used to produce conventional oil. Emits about 15% more CO2 and consumes more than 3 times as much water Coal, oil, natural gas - ranked based on amount of greenhouse gases emitted