1. On your index card:
• Summarize the difference between renewable
and nonrenewable resources. Fill the front of
your card, and make sure your name is on the
card.

2. Nonrenewable Resources
• It’s not replaced as quickly as it is used.
• Takes a long time for these to form.
• Currently we depend on fossil fuels, which are
nonrenewable for the majority of our energy.

3. Coal

4. Coal
Advantages Disadvantages
• Abundant supply • Emits greenhouse gases and
• Currently inexpensive to mine causes acid rain
• Reliable and able to generate • Mining can be dangerous
large amounts of power • Eventually, the coal supply will
run out

5. Oil and Natural Gas

6. Oil (Petroleum)
Advantages Disadvantages
• Good fuel for vehicles • High carbon dioxide emissions
• Economical to produce • Found in limited areas
• Easy to transport • Supply may be used up soon
• Environmental impact
through drilling and
transporting

7. Natural Gas
Advantages Disadvantages
• Widely available • Unavailable in many areas
• Cleanest burning fossil fuel • Still pollutes some
• Pipelines impact environment

8. Nuclear
Advantages Disadvantages
• No greenhouse gases • Although not much waste is
• Produces huge amounts of produced, it is very, very
energy from small amounts of dangerous.
fuel. It must be sealed up and
• Produces small amounts of buried for many years to allow
waste. the radioactivity to die away.
• Nuclear power is reliable. • Nuclear power is reliable, but a
lot of money has to be spent on
safety – if it does go wrong, a
nuclear accident can be a
major disaster.

9. Reflection Questions
• Choose 1 and answer on page 35 in at least 1
sentence
▫ What were the two most important points in what
we just looked at?
▫ Compare/contrast the use of fossil fuels and
nuclear energy.
▫ Which of the types of energy we have talked about
do you feel is the best? Why?
▫ Create a simile for fossil fuels. (Fossils fuels are
like ….)

10. Renewable Resources
• Renewable resources can be replaced in a
relatively short period of time (like your
lifetime).

11. Solar
Advantages Disadvantages
• It’s free • Expensive to build power
• There’s no waste and no stations
pollution • Can’t collect it at night
• It will last for 5 billion years • Can be unreliable if you’re not
in a sunny climate

12. Wind
Advantages Disadvantages
• Wind is free and requires no • Wind is unpredictable and
fuel sometimes there is no wind
• No waste • The land in windy areas may
• Land below can still be used be expensive
for farming • Can kill birds
• Good for remote areas • Is noisy and can effect TV
• Can become a tourist reception
attraction

13. Hydroelectric

14. Hydroelectic
Advantages Disadvantages
• Energy is virtually free once • Expensive to build dams
the dam is built • Building the dam will flood a
• No waste large area
• More reliable than wind and • Find the right place is difficult
solar • Water quality and quantity can
• Water can be stored for peak be effected downstream
demands

15. Tidal

16. Tidal
• Turbines are placed Turbines are placed
underwater like with a dam. underwater like with a dam.
Tidal turbines have to spin 180 Tidal turbines have to spin 180
degrees because the tide degrees because the tide
switches directions 4 times a switches directions 4 times a
day! day!

17. Tidal
Advantages Disadvantages
• Once you've built the • Very expensive to build.
dam, tidal power is free. • Affects a very wide area - the
• It produces no environment is changed for
greenhouse gases or many miles upstream and
downstream.
other waste. • Many birds rely on the tide
• It needs no fuel. uncovering the mud flats so
• It produces electricity that they can feed.
reliably. • Only provides power for around
• Not expensive to 10 hours each day, when the
maintain. tide is actually moving in or out.
• Tides are totally • There are very few suitable
predictable sites for tidal power stations.

18. Reflection Questions
• Choose 1 and answer on page 35 in at least 1
sentence
▫ In your own words, explain solar, wind, and
hydroelectric power.
▫ Brainstorm some solutions to the disadvantages
mentioned for solar power.
▫ Of solar, wind, and hydroelectric, which would
you most want to use and why?
▫ Draw a picture of what your life would be like
using solar or wind power.

19. Biomass

20. Biomass
Advantages Disadvantages
• Abundant Supply • Emits some pollution
• Fewer emissions than fossil • Increases air pollution
fuels • Uses fossil fuels in conversion
• Cars can be easily converted to
run on biomass

21. Geothermal
Advantages Disadvantages
• Minimal environmental • Few places where geothermal
impact is workable
• Low emissions • Wells could be depleted
• Low cost after initial
investment

22. Reflection Questions
• Choose 1 and answer on page 35 in at least 1
sentence
▫ Define biomass so a 3rd grader would understand.
▫ What could be some of the problems associated
with geothermal?
▫ Where would you need to live to make geothermal
a viable option as an energy source?
▫ Create a one-pane cartoon and caption about
biomass.