Glossary of environmental terms.pdf

English Level 7

Environmental

Management

RENEWABLE ENERGY

What is renewable energy?

Energy waste

Biofuels

PART 1

RENEWABLE ENERGY

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1. Mention at least 3 ideas which might improve the use of natural resources in order to produce energy.

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2. Read the text about Renewable Energy. Pay attention to new terms related to the topic. Identify the words and highlight them. Discuss the meaning of those words.

What is Renewable Energy?

Renewable energy is energy generated from natural resources—such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat—which are renewable (naturally replenished). Renewable energy technologies range from solar power, wind power, hydroelectricity/micro hydro, biomass and biofuels for transportation.

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3. Complete the paragraphs below with the following terms (some terms are repeated in the same paragraph):

CLASS DISCUSSION

1. _________________ is energy that is generated from natural processes that are continuously replenished. This includes sunlight, geothermal heat, wind, tides, water, and various forms of biomass. This energy cannot be exhausted and is constantly renewed.

2. _________________ is a term used for an energy source that is an alternative to using fossil fuels. Generally, it indicates energies that are non-traditional and have low environmental impact. The term alternative is used to contrast with fossil fuels according to some sources. By most definitions _________________ doesn't harm the environment, a distinction which separates it from renewable energy which may or may not have significant environmental impact.

3. _________________, is a renewable organic matter, and can include biological material derived from living, or recently living organisms, such as wood, waste, and alcohol fuels. Wood energy is derived both from harvested wood as a fuel and from wood waste products. Waste energy can be generated from municipal waste, manufacturing waste, and landfill gas. _________________ alcohol fuel, or ethanol, is derived almost exclusively from corn.

4. _________________ is fuel made from plant oils that can be used in diesel engines. They are typically made of renewable organic raw materials such as soybean or rapeseed oils, animal fats, waste vegetable oils or microalgae oils.

Source: http://extension.psu.edu/natural-resources/energy/what

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Group discussion

1. What is your opinion about the misuse and waste of natural resources? List your ideas and compare them with your partners.

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2. Complete the following sentences predicting environmental issues related to energy waste and the improvement in the use of new resources (use the future perfect).

4. The outdated four will have ……… 5. Energy efficient resources will have ………..

ENERGY WASTE

The world will rely increasingly on a mix of renewable energy resources. In addition, however, many analysts urge us to make much greater use of a strategy not usually thought of as a source of energy—that is, energy conservation, a decrease in energy use based primarily on reducing unnecessary waste of energy.

The best way to conserve energy is to improve energy efficiency—the measure of how much work we can get from each unit of energy we use.

Reducing energy waste has numerous economic and environmental advantages (Figure 16-3). To most energy analysts, reducing energy waste is the quickest, cleanest, and usually the cheapest, way to provide more energy, reduce pollution and environmental degradation, slow global

warming, and increase economic and national security (Concept 16-1).

Four widely used devices waste large amounts of energy unnecessarily:

• An incandescent lightbulb uses only 5–10% of the electricity it draws to produce light, while the other 90–95% is wasted as heat. It is really a heat bulb.

• A motor vehicle with an internal combustion engine wastes about 94% of the energy in its fuel.

• A coal-fired power plant wastes 66% of the energy released by burning coal to produce electricity and probably 75–80% if we include the energy needed to dig up the coal and transport it to the plant.

Energy-efficiency experts say we can no longer afford to build our societies around such energy-wasting and environmentally harmful devices, which some call the outdated four. They call for us to replace these energy- wasting dinosaurs with more energy-efficient and less polluting and climate-changing alternatives over the next few decades.

Such alternatives include compact fluorescent and light emitting diode (LED) lights, fuel cells to power motor vehicles and provide heat and electricity for buildings, and wind and solar cell farms to produce electricity. These replacements could be coupled with a mix of existing energy-saving measures such as using more insulation; plugging air leaks; using energy -efficient windows, appliances, and building design; and recycling and reusing most materials.

In 2008, Lester Brown estimated that shifting to more energy-efficient lighting and appliances alone over the next two decades could save the world enough electricity to avoid building more than 1,400 large coal-burning power plants, thereby also avoiding great amounts of climate-changing CO2 emissions.

Miller, Jr. T. G., & Spoolman, S. (2009). Living in the environment: Concepts, Connections, and Solutions.

Belmont: Brooks/Cole. Chapter 16.

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Individual work

1. Make a list of the main ideas in both texts (Renewable energy and Energy waste).

Group work

1. Share the ideas with your classmates 2. Elaborate a mind map including:

● The causes and consequences of energy waste. ● The benefits of renewable energy.

PART 2

BIOFUELS

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1. Watch the following video and add all the information you know in reference to the topic(s).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-qJ-6XJKBk

a. Explain the process in which plants can be used to produce energy (include the terms Biofuels and Fossil fuels).

b. Which are the two main sources Biofuels are made from? Explain the process through which they are produced.

ISSUES ECONOMIC ETHICAL ENVIRONMENTAL

POSITIVE ASPECTS

NEGATIVE ASPECTS

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1. Which are the issues implied in the adoption of new biofuels? Develop on the topic.

2. What is the concern about the use of Biolubricants? What solutions can be provided in order to make use of them?

3. Why is it so difficult to produce Biofuels?

BIOFUELS

As agricultural producers adopt new biofuels like biodiesel and vegetable oils, they need to be concerned about issues such as fuel quality, engine maintenance and performance.

Biofuels

New fuels such as biodiesel require careful study and attention to many details before they can be used widely.

Critical issues include:

● The issues associated with manufacturing, storage and distribution

Biolubricants

Petroleum lubricants are widely used but can result in expensive clean up costs when spills or a loss from equipment occurs in sensitive environments.

Our demonstrations of bio based lubricants have shown that:

● Use of environmentally friendly bio based lubricants can help to reduce or eliminate these costs.

● They can be an effective alternative to conventional petroleum based lubricants. ● They provide a value added use for agricultural commodities used in their production.

Biofuel Production Issues

The production of bio based fuels on both the small and the large scale is complex and can involve many economic, safety and environmental issues.

One example is the production of biodiesel on a small scale.

● Biodiesel production involves the use of strong bases and alcohols, such as methanol. Handling and disposal of these and other co products requires careful attention to avoid causing health or environmental issues.

● Quality control to avoid the production of substandard fuel and engine performance issues that can result.

PART 3

ENERGY

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1. Enumerate the different types of energy that you know. 2. Compare them with your classmates’ ideas.

3. Explain briefly how each type of energy is obtained. 4. Explain briefly how each one is used.

5. Choose the source you consider the most beneficial. Justify your choice.

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6. Answer the following questions

WIND ENERGY

a) How was wind energy used in the past? How differently is it used today? b) Why is location a determining factor?

c) What is the main disadvantage?

d) What further information can you provide about the topic?

SOLAR ENERGY

a) Explain the process of photosynthesis. b) Why is solar energy the best source?

c) Using your own words, develop on the two main types of solar energy. Do you know any other(s)?

d) What great advantage do solar photovoltaics provide? e) How do solar thermal systems work?

f) Which is one of the best ways of obtaining this type of energy? g) What are the advantages and disadvantages?

WIND ENERGY

Wind energy is certainly not new – the earliest European settlers arrived on wind-powered ships, and many windmills were used during colonial times.

However, modern wind power equipment is very different from those early attempts to harness the power of the air.

Most commonly, wind energy systems generate electricity using large “windmill” turbines atop tall masts on high mountain ridges or in exposed locations. Modern wind turbines can vary in size, ranging from small 1000-watt residential units to enormous, 5-megawatt turbines that soar hundreds of feet in the air.

Farmers who own land that is suitable for wind farming can take advantage of their location by installing their own wind turbine or by leasing wind rights to a wind power company. While wind energy shows a great deal of promise, it is limited by the fact that wind power can only be generated when wind is blowing at an appropriate speed.

SOLAR ENERGY

The sun is probably the most important source of renewable energy available today.

Traditionally, the sun has provided energy for practically all living creatures on earth, through the process of photosynthesis, in which plants absorb solar radiation and convert it into stored energy for growth and development. Scientists and engineers today seek to utilize solar radiation directly by converting it into useful heat or electricity.

Two main types of solar energy systems are in use today: photovoltaics, and thermal systems.

Solar photovoltaics

prohibitively expensive to supply electricity from a utility line.

Solar thermal systems

Solar Thermal Systems seek to store heat from the sun that can be used for a variety of purposes. Many different approaches can be employed here, including active systems, such as solar hot water heaters, and passive systems, in which careful engineering design results in a building that automatically stores and utilizes solar energy. Greenhouses are a prime candidate for passive solar design, in which they collect solar energy on sunny days in winter and utilize it to keep the house warm at night.

The main advantages of solar energy are that it is clean, able to operate independently or in conjunction with traditional energy sources, and is remarkably renewable. The main disadvantages are that it is currently more expensive than traditional energy, and the availability of solar radiation varies from day to day, and from season to season.

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Group work

Imagine you are trying to explain the characteristics of the different types of energy mentioned above to students in primary school. Elaborate a summary for each one using your own words (you may use visual support).

Written Assignment

Imagine you are in charge of selling one of these systems.

Write an e-mail explaining how solar energy will have changed the world in ten years’ time. Use Future Perfect and connectors (200 words)

ORAL PRESENTATION FOR THE EXAM

Solar energy and our daily activities: SOLARMATE

● What do you know about this invention?

TOP TEN ENERGY SOURCES OF THE FUTURE

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uStFvcz9Or4