Amphibian Conservation & the Darwin's Frog Initiative

1. Environmental Science 1401 - Capstone Lecture, Fall 2011 Time: 10 am, Tue. Dec. 6, 2011 Place: Room CD2200 Clarkston Campus. Speaker: Dr. Danté Fenolio, Amphibian Conservation Scientist at Atlanta Botanical Garden, Department of Conservation Research.  This is about the botanical garden’s collaboration with the National Zoo of Chile and the Catholic University of Chile in the “Darwin’s Frog Conservation Initiative”.  Included will be details of their captive breeding facility and the field work associated with a number of critically endangered species.  This talk highlights the challenges of modern amphibian conservation and emergent infectious amphibian disease. Dec. 12 (Mon) : MasteringENVS, due 10 PM Dec. 13 (Tue) : Final Exam Announcement Start (11/25/08)

2. SOURCES: Fossil Fuels Conventional Energy Alternative Energy Chap. 19-21 ENERGY Fossil Fuels, Conventional & Alternative Energy What is energy? Start (xx/xx/xxxx)

3. Universe: consists of Matter and Energy “Law of Conservation of Mass & Energy” • Matter: Non-Living Matters: Inorganic Living Matters (Organism): “Life” (Organic) • Energy: Electromagnetic Energy(Light) Potential E., Kinetic E., Chemical E. • Living Organisms exchanges matter and energy with surroundings (environments)

4. All living organisms must work in order to sustain/subsist itself. →Living Organisms exchanges matter and energy with surroundings (environments) Autotrophs: Plants synthesize their own food “Photosynthesis” Heterotrophs: Animals depend on other organisms for food. What is energy ?”Ability or capacity to do work” Start (xx/xx/xxxx)

5. Energy: ability/capacity to do a workWork = force x distance (kg m/s2) x m = kg m2/s2 (= J, Joule) 1cal = 4.184 J Power = work/time = energy/timeAverage human:2,500 kcal/day (for 60kg or 132lbs body weight) = 120 cal/sec = 120 Watts • Kinetic Energy - Heat • Potential Energy • Electrical Energy • Chemical Energy • Radiation Energy • Mass Energy • First Law of Thermodynamics: Conservation of Energy

6. 40 coal/gas fueled power plants 35 hydroelectric power plants 4 Nuclear power plants Southern Company: one of largest electric companies Georgia Power, Alabama Power, Gulf Power, Mississippi Power 42,000 MW ( ~ 1.3 EJ/yr), 4.3M customers ( cf. 1kW/home) → 42,000MW/4.3M = 10kW/Cust. → 42,000MW/79 plant= ~ 531 MW/plant

7. Electrical energy is the most convenient form of energyeasy to transport- How electricity is generated in a coal-burning power plant Refer to p 549- Energy Source → Heat Water → Generate Steam (Vapor Pressure)→ Turn the Turbine → Electrical Current Generator→ Distribute Electricity- What’s an electrical current? • Coal/gas fueled power plants • Hydroelectric power plants • Nuclear power plants (Fission & Fusion) • Conversion of energy: • Heat Energy → Mechanical Energy → Electrical Energy

8. Energy sources used today

9. Per capita energy use varies • Nations differ greatly in amounts of energy used per person. • Developed nations like the U.S. use by far the most. Figure 17.3

10. Energy use • Developed and developing nations show different profiles of energy use. *OECD nations non-OECD nations *Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Figure 17.4

11. Fossil fuel use has been rising for years • Growth in coal has slowed, but oil and gas are still rising. Figure 17.5

12. Fossil fuels • These are fossils in the sense that they are made of remnant decayed material from ancient organisms. • Compressed tissues of plants (and some animals) from 100–500 million years ago (mesozoic/paleozoic era; carboniferous period in particular 300 mya) store chemical energy from photosynthesis. • This greatly concentrated energy is released when we burn coal, oil, or gas.

13. Fossil fuels • Anaerobic (without oxygen) decomposition is required for fossil fuel formation. • (Aerobic = decay in presence of oxygen) • Anaerobic environments exist at the bottom of the ocean, in deep lakes, and in swamp sediments.

14. Fossil fuels:Formation Plants and animals die Organic material settles in anaerobic site and is partly decomposed Organic material is buried Heat and pressure alter chemical bonds Coal, gas, oil formed Figure 17.6

15. Fossil fuels • Coal: Compressed under high pressure to form dense carbon structures. • Natural gas: Primarily methane, CH4, is produced: • By bacteria near surface • By heat and pressure deep below ground • Crude oil: Sludgelike mix of hundreds of types of hydrocarbon molecules. Forms at temperatures and pressures found 1.5–3 kilometers below ground.

16. Distribution of fossil fuel reserves • Saudi Arabia has the most oil. • Russia has the most natural gas. • The U.S. has the most coal.

17. Oil production and consumption • Saudi Arabia produces the most oil. • The U.S. consumes the most oil.

18. Refining crude oil • Crude oil from the ground is a messy mix of hundreds of hydrocarbons. • It is put through a refining process to segregate different components. • Small-chain hydrocarbons boil at cooler temperatures in a distillation column, isolating lighter weight oils (e.g., butane). • Long-chain hydrocarbons boil at hot temperatures, isolating heavier oils (e.g., lubricating oils).

19. Refining crude oil # C ~ 4 ~6 ~8 ~14 ~16 ~18 >20 From The Science behind the Stories

20. Petroleum products • Refined components of crude oil are used to manufacture many of the material goods we use every day. • Petroleum products include: • • Helmet, water bottle, sunglasses • • Clothing • • Sunscreen • • Gear and chain grease Figure 17.11

21. Oil supply and prices • World oil prices have varied greatly according to supply, demand, and political events. In recent decades, unrest in the Middle East has most influenced prices. Figure 17.12

22. Depletion of oil reserves • World oil reserves are a finite resource as well. • Some observers predict they are peaking right about now. Figure 17.15b

23. Coal: History • First used 3,000 years ago. • Powered the industrial revolution in England, • then in other countries in 18th~19th Century • (1775, James Watt, Steam Engines) • Today surpassed by oil, • but still the most abundant fossil fuel • Coal powers half of all electricity generation.

24. How coal is formed • Several types of coal exist, depending on the amount of heat and pressure that overlying sediments have exerted. Figure 17.16

25. How coal is formed • Peat is partially decayed organic matter near the surface, a precursor to coal. • With more time, • more heat and pressure, • squeezing out more moisture, • coal becomes more energy-rich. • So anthracite is the most energy-rich type of coal.

26. Coal mining • Coal is mined • either underground, in subsurface mining, • or from the surface, in strip mining. Figure 17.17

27. Coal production and consumption • China produces and consumes the most coal, followed by the United States.

28. Electricity generation from coal • Coal is most used to generate electricity. Heat from coal burning boils steam, turning a turbine to power a generator. From The Science behind the Stories

29. Natural gas: History • Seeps known for 2,000+ years • Used for street lighting in the 1800s • Became commonly used after WWII once pipeline technology became safer

30. Natural gas formation: Mostly Methane with small amount of, ethane, propane • Forms in two ways: • • Biogenic gas = formed at shallow depths by anaerobic decomposition of organic matter by bacteria • (“swamp gas”) • • Thermogenic gas = formed at deep depths as geothermal heating separates hydrocarbons from organic material • (Formed directly OR from crude oil altered by heating. Thus gas deposits often occur with oil deposits.)

31. Gas extraction • Initially, gas comes out on its own from natural pressure. • Later, it must be pumped out. Horsehead pump to extract natural gas Figure 17.18

32. Natural gas production and consumption • Russia produces the most natural gas. • The U.S. consumes the most natural gas.

33. Oil commerce • A small number of nations export nearly all the world’s oil. Figure 17.22

34. Oil dependence • Nations like France, Japan, and South Korea consume (outline) much more than they produce (solid color). Figure 17.23

35. The Ecological Footprint US 9.6 ha, World 2.23 ha per capita • % • 37 • 27 • 13 • 23 • ___ • 100 • Carbon Footprint (Home energy & transportation): i.e., Gas, electricity & gasoline • Food Footprint • Housing • Goods and Services Footprint (Clothing, & others)

36. http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx

37. Nuclear power • 6.8% of world’s primary energy supply • 16.9% of world’s electricity production • Grew 15-fold since 1970 • But has stagnated now in U.S. and other countries due to safety concerns and economics

38. Nuclear energy • Comes from the radioactive element uranium • The nuclear fuel cycle enriches forms of uranium to make it into usable fuel. • Waste fuel is radioactive and must be specially disposed of. Figure 17.24

39. Nuclear energy • Two ways to produce nuclear energy: • Fission: used for power • Fusion: not yet used commercially

40. Nuclear energy: Fusion • Fusion = nuclei of lightweight elements are forced together. • Not efficient for power production, so is not (yet) used Figure 17.25b

41. Nuclear energy: Fission • Fission = energy is released by splitting apart uranium nuclei by bombarding them with neutrons. • This is the process used in nuclear reactors and weapons. Figure 17.25a

42. Nuclear energy: Fission • Note that several neutrons • are produced from each • reaction with one neutron. • This means the reaction • could be a runaway reaction, or explosion. • In a commercial reactor, the reaction must be controlled. • Metal rods are used to absorb the extra neutrons. Engineers move these control rods to regulate the reaction. Figure 17.25a

43. Nuclear reactor • In a reactor, fission boils steam to turn a turbine and generate electricity Figure 17.26

44. Nuclear troubles • Although nuclear power is clean, lacking the pollutants of fossil fuels, it has faltered, due to: • Cost overruns • Public fears of catastrophic accidents • Three Mile Island, 1979 • Chernobyl, 1986 • Fukushima, May 2011 - Natural Disaster, • Earthquake/Tsunami • 450 nuclear plants remain operating today in the world; 100 have closed.

45. Renewable energy sources • Biomass: from combustion of organic material • Hydropower: from water flowing through dams • Solar: from the sun’s rays • Wind: from the wind • Geothermal: from heat and heated water • beneath the ground • Ocean sources: from the tides and from waves • Hydrogen: fuel and fuel cells that store renewable energy in usable form

46. Renewable sources presently comprise only a small portion of our energy. And of renewable energy, most is biomass (mostly fuelwood) and hydropower. The “new renewables” account for very little currently. Renewable sources today Figure 18.1

47. Renewable sources presently generate 19% of our electricity. The vast majority of this is from hydropower. Renewable sources for electricity Figure 18.2

48. Growth of renewable sources • Renewable sources, esp. wind and solar, are growing at an astounding rate. • These figures are percentage growth per year. Figure 18.3

49. Biomass • Organic substances produced by recent photosynthesis • (unlike fossil fuels, products of ancient photosynthesis)

50. Uses of biomass energy • More than 1 billion people burn fuelwood or charcoal as their principal power source for cooking, heating, etc. • New uses: • • Converting into liquid fuel for vehicles (ethanol, biodiesel) • • Collecting and using methane from landfills or livestock manure • • Combusting biomass in biomass power plants • • Burning with coal in power plants built for both • • Converting into gases to improve electricity generation