A Year 12 student from Hawkesdale P12 College produced this slideshow as school assessed coursework for Unit 3 VCE Environmental Science.

1. Unit 3 Environmental
Science: School Assessed
Coursework for Area of
Study 1 SAC 1B

2. Fossil and Non-Fossil,
Renewable Energy Source

3. Macarthur Wind Farm Mortlake Gas Plant

4. “Describe the principles of energy
and relate them to the contribution
of one fossil fuel and non-fossil
energy source to the enhanced
greenhouse effect”

5. Macarthur Wind Farm Mortlake Gas Plant
Information
 140 3MW turbines, the
Macarthur Wind Farm is
currently the largest wind
farm in the southern
hemisphere.
 Wind is a non-fossil,
renewable energy resource.
 550 MW Mortlake gas-fired
open cycle power station.
And is the largest gas-fired
power station in Victoria.
 An 83km underground
natural gas pipeline
connects Mortlake to the
Otway Gas Plant at Port
Campbell.
 Gas is a fossil fuel and a
non-renewable energy
resource.

6. Wind
Gas
Extraction
 Wind is extracted from the
atmosphere which provides
wind for the blades to turn
the turbine.
 Found deep underground rock
formations and extracted from oil
wells.
 Underground pressure drives fluids to
the surface. When the pressure falls,
pumps are used to bring more fluids
to the surface. Sometimes, natural
gas is pumped back down the well
underneath the oil. The gas expands,
pushing the oil to the surface.

7. Wind Gas
Transport
 Wind power is converted into
electricity by magnets moving past
stationary coils of wire known as
the stator. As the magnets pass the
stator, AC electricity is produced.
 It is then converted into DC
electricity which can be used to
charge batteries which store the
electrical energy or can also be fed
into a grid interactive inverter for
feeding power into the electricity
grid.
 Gas is transported by a 83km
airtight underground pipeline from
where they extract the gas from
Thylacine to the Otway Gas Plant
 Risky if there is a leak because the
gas is colourless, but at the
refinery at the Otway Gas Plant,
chemical is added to make the gas
have an odour so you can smell
where the leak is.

8. Wind Gas
Use
 A base load power source
 Constitutes 2.4% of Australia’s
electricity demand
 Energy used for electricity
 An on-demand, peak load power source.
 Constitutes about 20% of Australia's
energy use.
 Energy used for transport, electricity,
heating, cooking and generating
electricity.

9. Macarthur Wind Farm Mortlake Gas Plant
Modification of land use
 The wind farm area covers
approximately 5,500
hectares of freehold
agricultural land.
 Windy location.
 Dual use of farming and a
wind turbines.
 Close to the Alcoa high
voltage power line and 83
kilometres from the refinery.
 Origin energy owns 100
hectares and the gas plant
area covers approximately
20 hectares.
 No Dual use, solely for gas
plant.

10. Macarthur Wind
Farm Map

11.  wind spins the turbine.
 the turbine turns the low speed shaft
which connects to the gear box.
 the gear box connects the low speed
shaft to the high speed shaft.
 the high speed shaft drives the
generator.
 the generator produces electricity and
connects to the supply grid.

12.  air and gas are mixed together and
combusted within the turbine.
 this force causes the rotor of the
turbine to turn.
 the turbine is coupled to a generator
 as the turbine turns, the generator
rotates and produces electricity.
 electricity from the generator is
passed through a transformer and
uploaded to the grid.

13. Macarthur Wind Farm Mortlake Gas Plant
Social Impacts
 Noise
 Aesthetics
 Sickness
 Community assistance
 400 construction jobs
created, now 20 on site staff.
 Makes people adapt to living
with the noise and the look of
the wind towers.
 Aesthetics
 Jobs created
 Makes people adapt
 Greenhouse gas emissions

14. Macarthur Wind Farm Mortlake Gas Plant
Economic Impacts
 The cost was $1 billion.
 Farmers being paid for
each turbine.
 The cost was $650 million.
 Quick to build.
 Cheaper than wind per MW.

15. Wind Farm Gas Plant
Environmental Impacts
 Greenhouse gas emissions
produced during
construction. (CO2)).
 Wildlife and vegetation
 Bird Kills
 10,000 hectares 420MW
 Greenhouse gas emissions
produced during construction
and operation. (CO2 and
water vapour).
 Wildlife and vegetation
 Bird Kills
 100 hectares 550MW

16. Natural

17. Natural Enhanced
About The Greenhouse Effects
 Heat energy from the sun shines
down onto the Earth. Some
passes through a blanket of gases
in our atmosphere.
 Greenhouse gases (CO2) create a
shield around the earth. Without
them, all the heat energy would
escape into space an life on earth
would be impossible because of
the low temperature (-18˚C).
 Some heat energy escapes into
space and some is absorbed by
the blanket of gases.
 Human activities such as burning fossil
fuels create more greenhouse gases,
which means more heat energy is
absorbed and the Earth rises in its
average surface temperature.
 Nine of the ten warmest years in the
instrumental record have occurred
since 1990.
 There wouldn’t only be a rise in
temperature. There would also be
changes to average rainfall, and an
increase in the frequency of extreme
events such as very hot weather,
storms and storm surges, which would
become more severe.

19. Wind Gas
Wind vs Gas Contribution
 During construction
greenhouse gas emissions
were emitted by the transport
of parts of the turbine and
making the parts etc.
 During operation the only
emissions emitted are the
workers driving from their
homes to the two substations.
The wind towers do not
produce any emissions

20. Policies and Strategies

21. International National
 Kyoto Protocol
Many developed countries
have agreed to legally binding
limitations/reductions in their
emissions of greenhouse
gases in two commitments
periods. The first commitment
period applies to emissions
between 2008-2012, and the
second commitment period
applies to emissions between
2013-2020.
 Coalition Direct Action Plan
Direct action to reduce
carbon emissions.
Commitment to a five per
cent reduction in carbon
emissions by 2020. Reduce
of emissions inside Australia,
not by paying billions of
dollars to foreign carbon
traders.

22. State Local
 Victorian Greenhouse Strategy
Continue the efforts of the 2002 Victorian
Greenhouse Strategy to promote actions
that deliver reductions in net greenhouse gas
emissions in the short term. Take further steps
to position Victoria to prosper in a low carbon
economy. Consolidate our understanding of
the potential
impacts of climate change and progressively
shift the focus of research towards
understanding the adaptive responses
required
to deal with those impacts.
 Moyne Shire Environmental
Sustainability Strategy 2011-2015
“To raise awareness of environmental
issues and develop
strategies and identify actions, that
through implementation, will
lead to increased protection and
enhancement of the natural and
built environment in a sustainable
manner.”

23. Bibliography
 http://www.agl.com.au/about-agl/how-we-source-energy/renewable-
energy/macarthur-wind-farm
 http://www.agl.com.au/macarthur/
 http://www.originenergy.com.au/1376/Mortlake-Power-Station
 http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Earth's_greenhouse_effect_(US_EPA,
_2012).png
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_gas
 http://www.adventuresinenergy.org/exploration-and-production/Extracting-Oil-
and-Natural-Gas.html
 http://www.pacshell.org/economic-impacts.asp
 http://www.alliantenergykids.com/EnergyBasics/AllAboutNaturalGas/000511
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_Protocol
 Mortlake Gas Plant Fact Sheet