We use a variety of energy sources

1. Most of our energy comes from the sun Solar, wind, hydroelectric, photosynthesis, biomass Fossil fuels = highly combustible substances made from the remains of organisms from a long time ago A great deal of energy emanates from Earth’s core Geothermal power Also, there’s a lot of energy in an atom’s bonds: Nuclear power We use a variety of energy sources

2. Global consumption is at its highest level ever The high energy content of fossil fuels makes them efficient to burn, ship, and store Electricity = a good way to store energy Fossil fuels: our dominant source of energy

3. The energy stream of the U.S.

4. Renewable energy = regenerates over short time periods Sunlight, geothermal energy, tidal energy Nonrenewable energy = we will use up Earth’s accessible store before it’s regenerated Oil, coal, natural gas, nuclear energy To replenish the fossil fuels we have depleted so far would take millions of years Resources are renewable or nonrenewable

5. Fossil fuels were formed from organisms that lived 100–500 million years ago Aerobic decomposition = organic material is broken down and recycled in the presence of air Anaerobic decomposition = occurs with little or no air Deep lakes, swamps Produces fossil fuels Fossil fuels are created from fossils

6. Fossil fuel reserves • Some regions have substantial reserves • How long a nation’s reserves will last depends on how much the nation extracts, uses, exports, and imports • Nearly 67% of the world’s proven reserves of crude oil lie in the Middle East • Russia holds the most natural gas • The U.S. has the most coal

8. Developed nations consume lots of energy • People in developed regions consume far more energy than those in developing nations • 100 times more energy per person • Energy use is divided between transportation, industry, and other uses (manufacturing, etc.) • Developing nations use energy for subsistence activities • Agriculture, food preparation, and home heating • Generally use human or another animal’s energy

9. Regions vary greatly in energy consumption

10. It takes energy to make energy • We don’t get energy for free • To harness, extract, process, and deliver energy takes energy • Drilling for oil requires roads, wells, vehicles, storage tanks, pipes, housing, etc. • Net energy = energy returned – energy invested Net

11. Energy returned on investment (EROI) • Energy returned on investment (EROI) = energy returned/energy invested • Higher ratios mean we receive more energy than we invest • Fossil fuels have high EROI • EROI ratios can change • They decline when we run out of easily accessible sources • U.S. oil EROI ratios have gone from 100:1 to 5:1

12. Coal • The world’s most abundant fossil fuel • Created 300–400 million years ago • Coal = organic matter (woody plant material) • Compressed under very high pressure in swamps to form dense, solid carbon structures • Very little decomposition

13. Coal is mined using two major methods • Strip mining = for deposits near the surface • Heavy machinery removes huge amounts of earth to expose the coal • Subsurface mining = underground deposits are reached by digging tunnels to follow seams (layers) of coal • Mountaintop removal = entire mountaintops are cut off • Common in the Appalachian Mountains

15. Coal • The U.S. and China are the primary producers and consumers of coal • It provides half the U.S. electrical generating capacity • PSE gets more than 30% of its electricity from a coal plant in Montana

16. A typical coal-fired power plant

17. Coal varies in its qualities • Peat = organic material that is broken down anaerobically • It is wet, near the surface, and not well compressed • Additional pressure, heat, and time turn peat into coal • Lignite = least compressed • Sub-bituminous and bituminous • Anthracite = most compressed, most energy

18. Coal contains impurities • It has sulfur, mercury, arsenic, and other trace metals • The sulfur content depends on whether coal was formed in salt water or freshwater • Coal in the eastern U.S. is high in sulfur because it was formed in marine sediments • Impurities are emitted when coal is burned • Unless pollution control measures are used • The Earth holds enough coal to last a few hundred years

19. Natural gas burns more cleanly than coal • The fastest growing fossil fuel in use today • 25% of global commercial energy consumption • It is versatile and clean-burning • Emits ½ as much CO2 as coal, ⅔ as much as oil • Generate electricity, heat homes, and cook • Russia leads the world in production • The U.S. leads the world in use • World supplies are projected to last about 60 more years

20. Natural gas is formed in two ways • Natural gas = methane (CH4) and other volatile hydrocarbons • Biogenic gas = pure methane created at shallow depths by bacterial anaerobic decomposition of organic matter • “Swamp gas” & garbage dump gas • Thermogenic gas = methane and other gases arise from compression and heat deep underground • Most of the gas that is extracted commercially

21. Natural gas is often wasted • Coalbed methane = from coal seams • Leaks to the atmosphere during mining • In remote oil-drilling areas, natural gas is flared • In Alaska, gas captured during oil drilling is being reinjected into the ground for future use • Landfills produce biogenic natural gas • Operators are capturing and selling it

22. Natural gas extraction becomes challenging • The first gas fields simply required an opening • The gas moved upward • Most remaining fields require pumping by horsehead pumps

23. Offshore drilling on the seafloor • Produces 1/3 of our oil and 13% of our natural gas • In 2008, Congress lifted a drilling moratorium along U.S. coasts • In 2010, President Obama said vast areas would be opened for drilling • British Petroleum’s Deepwater Horizon exploded • Crap

24. Heat and pressure form petroleum • Oil is the world’s most used fuel • Accounts for 35% of world’s energy use • Crude oil (petroleum) = a mixture of hundreds of different types of hydrocarbon molecules • Formed 1.5–3 km (1–2 mi) underground • Process similar to coal

25. Oil refineries create petroleum products • Refining =hydrocarbons are separated into different size classes and are chemically transformed • Creating specialized fuels for many uses

26. How to drill for oil: • Oil is under pressure and often rises to the surface • Drilling reduces pressure, and oil becomes harder to extract • Primary extraction= the initial drilling and pumping of available oil • Secondary extraction= solvents, water, or steam is used to remove additional oil, but it is expensive • We lack the technology to remove every bit of oil • As prices rise, it becomes economical to reopen a well

27. Primary and secondary oil extraction

28. Petroleum products have many uses Petroleum products are central to our lives

29. We may have depleted half our reserves • We have used up 1.1 trillion barrels of oil • Half our reserves? • At current levels of production (30 billion barrels/year), we have about 40 years of oil left

30. We are facing an oil shortage • Peak oil= rate of production peaks and then declines • We experience an immediate oil shortage • Production declines once reserves are depleted halfway • This crisis will begin • When this will happen is difficult to predict, because many oil producers won’t report how much remains in their reserves • It may have already happened • If not, it will probably be soon

31. Global oil production is peaking Discoveries of new oil fields peaked 30 years ago, and we are using more oil than we are discovering

32. After peak oil: • Large cities could not be supported without urban agriculture • Fewer petroleum-based fertilizers and pesticides would mean increase in hunger (NOT!) • Suburbs will become the new slums, a crime-ridden landscape littered with the hulls of rusted-out SUVs • More optimistic observers argue that as supplies dwindle, conservation and alternative energies will kick in

33. Canada is mining oil sands • Oil sands (tar sands) = sand deposits with bitumen • Degraded and chemically altered crude oil deposits • Removed by strip mining • Requires a lot of energy to mine and extract • Most is in Venezuela and Alberta

34. Tar sands mining – effects the landscape

35. Oil shale is abundant in the U.S. west • Oil shale = sedimentary rock filled with kerogen (organic matter) • Can be burned like coal or processed into petroleum • World’s supplies may equal 600 billion barrels • 40% is in the U.S., mostly on federally owned land in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah • Low prices for crude oil have kept investors away so far • Low EROI

36. Methane hydrate shows potential • Methane hydrate (methane ice) = molecules of methane in a crystal lattice of ice molecules • Occurs in arctic locations and under the seafloor • Formed by bacterial decomposition in anaerobic environments or deep thermogenic formation • Lots could be present • We don’t know how to extract it safely • Extraction could cause landslides and tsunamis • Release large amounts of methane – greenhouse gas

37. Clean coal technologies • Clean coal technologies = oxymoron • Marginally less dirty coal • Lots of interest • Clean Coal Video

38. Fossil fuels pollute water and air • For 3 months, the Deepwater Horizon’s explosion spilled millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico • The Gulf of Mexico suffered many impacts • Countless animals (birds, shrimp, fish, etc.) died • Coastal marsh plants died, leading to erosion • Fisheries were devastated and fishermen lost jobs • Oil from non-point sources enters waterways and aquifers • Alternative fossil fuels worsen the impacts • They use and pollute massive amounts of water

39. Coal mining devastates natural systems • Acid drainage = chemical runoff from strip mining enters waterways • Sulfuric acid leaches metals from rocks • U.S. regulations require companies to restore strip-mined land, but complete restoration is impossible • Mountaintop removal removes tons of rock and soil • Destroying immense amounts of habitat and creeks • Loosening of regulations in 2002 allowed companies to legally dump debris into valleys and rivers

40. The public pays the environmental costs • Costs of alleviating environmental impacts are high • The public pays for them • Costs are not internalized in the market price of fossil fuels • External costs are paid for in medical expenses, environmental cleanup, and decreased quality of life • Gas prices and utility bills don’t cover production costs • Government subsidies keep fossil fuel prices cheap • Fossil fuel industries get more than renewable ones Part of our tax dollars pay for our fossil fuel energy use

41. Many nations depend on foreign energy • We are vulnerable to supplies becoming unavailable or costly • Seller nations control prices, causing panic and inflation The U.S. imports 67% of its crude oil, meaning other nations control our energy supplies

42. Oil supply and prices affect economies • Hurricanes Katrina and Rita (2005) destroyed offshore platforms, causing oil and gas prices to spike • The politically volatile Middle East has the majority of oil reserves • Causing a constant concern for the U.S. • The U.S. has a close relationship with Saudi Arabia • Despite Saudi Arabia’s lack of democracy • Because it has 22% of the world’s oil reserves • Iraq has 10% of the world’s oil • Many believe this is why the U.S. invaded it in 2003

43. Residents may or may not benefit • Oil companies provide jobs for millions • Paying dividends to millions of investors • Citizens in Alaska are paid dividends by the government • Many support developing ANWR for jobs, health care, other services • Money from multi-national companies may not reach residents • Residents are not compensated for pollution, land degradation, and displacement • Many still live in poverty, without water or electricity

44. How will we convert to renewable energy? • We have options for future energy use: • Continue relying on fossil fuels until they are no longer economically practical • Immediately increase funding to develop alternative energy sources dramatically • Steer a middle course and gradually reduce our reliance on fossil fuels

45. Where the oil goes (millions of metric tons)

46. Energy efficiency and conservation • Energy efficiency= obtaining a given amount of output while using less energy input • Energy conservation= reducing energy use • We can extend our nonrenewable energy supplies • Be less wasteful • Reduce our environmental impact

47. CAFE standards • CAFE standards mandate higher fuel efficiency in cars • Fuel efficiencies fell from 22 mpg (1984) to 19 (2004) • They climbed to 21.1 in 2009 • In 2009 Congress mandated that cars must get 35 mpg by 2020 European and Japanese cars are twice as efficient as U.S. cars

48. Drilling in ANWR will not fill U.S. oil demand A little conservation and efficiency will save far more oil than ANWR has ANWR holds oil equal to 1 year’s supply of oil at current rates of use

49. Personal choice and efficiency • Energy conservation can be accomplished in two ways • Individuals can make conscious choices to reduce energy consumption and increase conservation • Drive less, turn off lights, buy efficient machines • Energy-consuming devices can be made more efficient • Cars and power plants lose ⅔ of energy as waste heat

50. We already have the technology we need • The U.S. has become more efficient, but we can do better • Cars: efficient engines, electric cars, hybrids, etc. • Cogeneration = excess heat produced during electrical generation is used to heat buildings • Or produce other types of power • It can double the efficiency of a power plant