What are the sources of

energy and how do these vary in

their global pattern?

What are the social, economic and

environmental issues associated with the

increasing demand for energy?

What is the relationship

between energy use and

economic development?

How can energy use be managed to ensure

sustainability?

What are the sources of energy and how do these vary in their global

pattern?

Global energy mix is made up of finite and renewable sources, which vary in their availability over time and space

The global pattern of energy supply and consumption

The availability of finite and renewable resources in different parts of the world

The physical, economic and political reasons for the variable pattern of energy supply over time and space

Non renewable (finite) energy are fossil fuels and nuclear fuel. They are finite which means that as they are used the supply is reduced. Eventually these resources could become completely exhausted e.g. coal, oil, gas

Renewable energy can be used over and over again. These resources are mainly forces of nature that are sustainable and that usually cause little or no environmental pollution e.g. HEP, biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, tidal and wave

As you can see MEDC’s have the highest consumption of energy

The USA, Canada, Greenland, Iceland and Norway have the highest consumption – over 300 million kilojoules

LEDC’s particularly in Africa and South-East Asia have the lowest consumption

Many countries in Africa have the lowest consumption with less than 10 million kilojoules, including Nigeria, Kenya and Tanzania

Exam Tip

If asked to describe you must ‘say what you see’

Identify the trend

Refer specifically to the data

How do we explain the energy

gap?

Wealth

Countries are able to invest in energy consuming technology and industry

The use of energy improves quality of life and people invest in more energy using devices i.e. cars, dishwashers, power showers etc.

Every day life relies on energy guzzling devices

Lack of funds means little investment in national energy supply

Poverty deprives people form using modern energy using technology

Lack of availability

Cold climates have high energy usages through heating

Another key factor affecting global consumption of energy is the availability of fuel. If there is an abundant supply of a fuel type it is likely to be widely used in that region e.g. oil in the Middle East

Globally coal reserves are depleted, however there are still abundant reserves in Asia Pacific where it is a significant source e.g. China

Natural gas is the man source of energy in Europe and Eurasia where there are still large gas fields in operation

Nuclear power is most important in Europe, Eurasia and North America, particularly in countries like France who do not have any significant reserves of fossil fuels. Nuclear is not available in the Middle East

HEP is most important in South and Central America (Ecuador). It contributes less than 1% in the Middle East as there are no river systems to sustain it.

Nuclear

HEP

The demand for energy has grown over time

Demand has grown had countries become more developed and more energy is needed for industrial and domestic purposes

Fossil fuels dominate the global energy situation (over 80%)

HEP and nuclear account for a much smaller proportion (around 6%)

Renewables account for a smaller proportion and are not well documented

•Global primary energy demand is expected to increase by at least 50% between 2006 and 2030

•This is an annual increase of 1.6%

•More than 70% of this increase will come form developing countries

•30% will come form China alone

Technological developmentTechnological development

•Nuclear energy has only been available since 1954

•Oil and gas con be extracted from much deeper locations

•Renewable technology is steadily advancing

Increasing National WealthIncreasing National Wealth

•Average incomes increase

•Living standards improve

•Increasing use of energy

•Increasing use of greater variety of energy sources

Changes in demandChanges in demand

•Change from coal to gas as Britain’s main energy source

•Recent media attention to green energy

Changes in priceChanges in price

•The relative prices of different types of energy can influence demand

•Electricity in the UK has gradually moved from coal to gas over the past 20 years

•The recent rise in oil prices

Environmental factors and public opinionEnvironmental factors and public opinion

Public opinion can influence decisions made by the government i.e. Nuclear and HEP in Sweden

People are much better informed about the environmental impact now than they used to be

Deposits of fossil fuels are only found in certain locations

Large power stations require flat and stable land

Solar power requires sun for many days a year

Many renewables depend upon specific geographic locations

Tidal power requires a large tidal range

Wind power requires high average wind speeds throughout the year

HEP requires certain physical conditions

More accessible and lowest cost deposits are exploited first

Onshore deposits are cheaper then off shore deposits to exploit, therefore they are exploited first

HEP close to existing infrastructure are cheaper to build than those in remote locations

In LEDC’s Foreign Direct investment is usually needed to develop energy resources

When energy costs rise companies increase spending on exploration and development

Countries who wish to develop nuclear energy require permission from the International Atomic Energy Agency

International Agreements e.g. Kyoto protocol can influence a countries energy decisions

HEP on international rivers may require agreements from other countries Governments may insist that

the countries energy companies produce acertain proportion of their energy from renewble sources

Legislation on power station emissions will favour low polluting sources e.g. low sulphur coal

What is the relationship between energy use and economic

development?

As economies develop there is an increased demand for energy

The energy use and mix associated with a highly developed economy (UK and Sweden)

The energy mix associated with a country at the lower end of the energy spectrum of development i.e India and Mali)

Reasons for the differences

There is a strong positive correlation between energy use and economic development.

There are some anomalies. About 2 billion people around the world do not have access to household electricity – adding these people would only add 1% to greenhouse gas emissions

As an economy develops greater amounts of energy are required for

many reasons

Mechanisation of agriculture

Expansion of manufacturing industry

Demands of a growing service sector

Increased freight and general business transport

Increasing car ownership

Higher levels of domestic use

Expansion of power networks to isolated villages

This case study can be used to demonstrate the relationship between energy use and economic development and energy mix

Rapidly running out of its

own reserves which have

made it a leading

producer in the past

Became a net importer of

natural gas in 2005

Coal industry in decline

By 2020 the UK will import 2/3 of

its energy needs

Many of the coal and nuclear power stations have been in service for a long time and will need to be closed in the next decade or so and new development will be costly.

Like many MEDC’s the

government is under

pressure to reduce the

amount of pollution

caused by energy

production and

consumption

Over the last 15 years there has been a modest decline in petrol

and a significant

decline in coal

Over the last 15 years there has been a rise in the use of gas

Between ½ and ¾ of oil and gas in territorial waters has been used – much of what is left is in small remote locations

Oil production peaked at the end of 1990’a and has now fallen to about 30% (2 million barrels a day). Natural gas production has also fallen considerably. These trends will continue into the future.

90% of Britain’s gas comes from the North Sea, around 10% from Europe's gas network and around 2% from Russia. Gas imports will rise in the future

The government is trying to encourage development of the remaining North Sea reserves by:

•Giving oil fields left fallow by large companies to smaller companies

•The larger fields which have declined in production and are less profitable to large oil companies are taken over by smaller companies

•New technologies are being developed

A new generation of nuclear power stations in the UK was looking unlikely until 2005

Due to energy concerns such as falling production in the North Sea it is back on the agenda

The government has to decide whether to let the nuclear industry gradually run down or build new plants. The Tories are in favour of nuclear power!

Nuclear plants take at least 10 years to plan and build

Environmental organisations e.g. Greenpeace are opposed to nuclear power9 out of 12 of the UK’s

nuclear power plants are due to close in the next 10 years

Without nuclear power it may be hard to meet the UK’s energy demands

At the beginning of the twentieth century coal mining

was the countries biggest employer employing over 1

million people Coal has significantly declined as it is the dirtiest and most inflexible of the fossil fuels

and virtually all of the countries easily accessible

coal has been mined.

Very little UK coal is exported, however imports are significant

Coal may make a limited comeback as clean coal technologies have been

developed which are cleaner and more efficient than previously

HEP accounts for a very small proportion of UK electricity production

Most HEP plants are located in the Scottish HighlandsThere aren’t may

opportunities to increase large scale HEP production as most commercially viable and environmentally acceptable sites are already in use

Some new plans will go ahead e.g. Glendoe in Inverness-shire

If all small-scale HEP was exploited it would meet around 3% of UK’s total electricity needs

The governments target is to get 10% of electricity from renewable sources

Biomass from land fill and waste combustion accounted for 1.55% in 2003

Wind is the only significant renewable resource in the UK

There have been some renewable developments

•A small geothermal power plant in Southampton

•Increase in solar panels

•2 wave pwer devices in UK and Scotland

The government promotes wind power at least partly to help meet its commitment to reduce carbon dioxide emissions

Energy companies are obliged generate 4.3% of the energy requirements through renewables a credit system operates where energy companies can buy credits from ‘green’ companies.

Financial assistance to renewable energy companies particularly wind farms is around £700 million a year – this is expected to rise to £1billion a year

It takes 3 years to plan and build a wind farm

Wind power is considered expensive

Microgenerastors produce less than 50kw

Small solar panels and wind turbines are becoming increasingly common

These devices could account for 30-40% of energy production by 2050

Improving quality of life e.g. less time spent collecting fuel wood

Health improvements e.g. reduction in pollution form indoor cooking and drugs

can be kept under refrigeration

Empowerment of the poor e.g. access to communications helps poor people be better

informed and more educated

Increased productivity and income e.g. increasing the

length of the working day and mechanisation

Improving the environment e.g.

reducing use of toxic biomass and deforestation

What are the social, economic and environmental issues associated with increasing energy demand?

The exploitation of energy resources brings both opportunities for people and the environment

The social and economic opportunities created by the exploitation of energy resources, including employment, community development and economic sustainability

The problems created by the exploitation of energy resources for people and the environment, including conflicts with indigenous populations, economic issues and environmental degradation

Build more power stations and extending electricity

transmission corridors – may adversely effect the

environment but will create jobs and lead to an

improvement of the quality of life (China)

New sources of power may be needed if existing sources reach their upper limits – may be reliant on imports (UK)

High levels of investment may be needed to install a modern energy infrastructure. FDI may be required (Vietnam)

As the energy infrastructure expands it may encourage the development of other industries (Egypt – Aswan Dam)

Initially skilled energy workers may be brought in form abroad, however over time the skills base in domestic employment should improve and boost employment (Chinese workers in African mines)

Some countries gain significant wealth from exporting surplus energy (Norway and Middle East)

Connection to electricity can bring considerable social benefit particularly in health and education e.g. the ability to refrigerate drugs and teach adult education in the evenings in schools

There are health concerns amongst people living close to nuclear and coal power stations and electricity pylons e.g. child leukaemia, cancer, respiratory programmes (Chernobyl)

A modern energy economy allows people to communicate in a wide variety of ways but face-face contact is often reduced as a result

Energy infrastructure has a significant visual impact – pylons, power stations, wind turbines

Fossil fuel combustion is the main source of the 3 major pollution problems (climate change, acid rain and urban smog – Shanghai)

Flooding areas behind HEP dams has significant environmental impact (Aswan Dam) particularly in forested areas as this results in the release of methane

Oil spills can occur from wells, pipelines and along tanker routes (Nigeria and USA)

Increasing demand for firewood leads to deforestation and can lead to desertification in semi-arid areas (Nigeria)

Emissions from transportation increase rapidly as an economy develops – China and India

This case study demonstrates the social and economic opportunities created by the exploitation

of energy

Discovered oil and gas in Norwegian waters in 1960’s

Bought economic and social

opportunities

Bought some problems – mainly environmental

The quantity of oil and gas was large and the population small so the benefits per person have been considerable

Oil and gas accounts for 1/3 of export earnings

7th largest producer of oil in the world

Less than a third of reserves have been extracted so the benefits are set to continue

Oil and gas is Norway’s most important industry

Vital to economy 80,000 jobs directly

25,000 jobs indirectly

In the early days Norway was reliant on foreign expertise

They developed hi-tech jobs in this field and now their knowledge is in demand in other parts of the world

Norway is now considered a world leader in sub-sea technology

The oil and gas industry has boosted innovation and technological development in other industrial sectors

Norway has a landscape ideal for HEP

HEP accounts for 99% of electricity production. The remainder comes from imports

Norway is one of the cleanest nations in terms of energy use

Currently has 850 HEP plants

Most potential sites have already been exploited

Cheap HEP has attracted heavy industries ( aluminium, zinc, fertilizers, ammonia) which have boosted the economy and created jobs (cumulative causation)

Norway has a very high standard of living due to oil and gas

Incomes are very high One of the best welfare systems in the world

Community development is a top priority on Norway’s social agenda

Revenue from oil and gas has allowed a high per capita spending on sports, youth and transport and community facilities in urban areas and smaller more isolated communities

This has helped sustain population in less accessible areas

Environmental concerns

Cheap HEP is attracting more and more heavy industries

Oil and gas sector work s to high standards – however offshore operations pose a maritime risk

Renewable Energy Programme

Reduce hydropower transmission line loss

Develop undersea cable technology

Looking at solar, wind and biomass opportunities

Oil and gas resources will not last forever

Surplus oil revenues have been placed in a Government Petroleum fund.

Money is invested abroad – not valued at %150billion

Nigeria is the world’s 6th largest oil exporter and has the potential to be a wealth nation like Norway

Nigeria exports to USA, Western Europe, Asia and Pacific, Latin America and Africa

Oil was first exported in 1956 and Nigeria joined OPEC in the mid 1970’s

Oil production is dominated by 5 TNC’s – Shell, Total, Agip, Exxon Mobil and Chevron

159 oilfields, 275 flow stations, 4500 miles of pipelines. Many new fields are offshore

Before oil, farm products such as palm oil and cocoa beans accounted for nearly all of Nigeria’s exports. Today oil make sup 90% of export earnings and 80% of revenue

The most populous country in Africa (130million) has gone from being self sufficient in food to importing more than it produces

This is because the government and local communities have abandoned agriculture in pursuit of oil wealth

Although it produces a lot of oil its own refineries are old, poorly run and frequently break down, so the country imports most of its oil. (refined oil can be sol for more money than unrefined oil)

The world bank sees Nigeria as a fragile state because of its failed governance, epidemic diseases and the risk of armed conflict

Quality of life in Nigeria is below all other oil producing nations (resource curse). Most Nigerians live on less than $1 a day

Corruption siphons off up to 70% of oil revenues

The oil industry was nationalised in 1971. In a joint venture agreement, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (government owned) owns 55-60% of TNC oil operations

Where has the money gone = ‘cancer of corruption’ and ‘institutionalised looting of national wealth’

Each one of Nigeria’s 36 states receive a share of the oil money but trickle down to the poor is limited

Africa’s largest remaining wetland has suffered an environmental disaster

Oil spills

Acid rain from gas flares

Deforestation of mangroves for pipeline routes

Fish die

50000 acres lost 1986 - 2003

Gas found alongside the oil is considered to difficult to difficult to transport and sell so is burnt off in huge flares causing acid rain, health concerns and environmental damage

The gas could be used by local villages for cooking, heating and lighting but it is considered too expensive to build the infrastructure

6817official oil spills – probably much higher

Construction has taken place without adequate environmental impact studies

Federal Environmental protection Agency since 1988 – probably corrupt!!

Environmental Impact Assessments were not compulsory until 1992

Locals have been forced to give up fishing because of reduced fish stocks + it is difficult to find alternative employment = unemployment

Many local people feel most jobs go to the country's ethnic majority groups who do not come from the delta + a history of ethnic rivalry = conflict

Inadequate investment in schools, hospitals, housing and other infrastructure

Health problems i.e. typhus

Forced to relocate to make way for oil infrastructure – if they refuse to move there is often armed conflict to force them to move

Local rebel groups attack the oil industry in outrage or to try and gain payouts e.g. Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta. Rising tide of violence has affected the country’s financial stability and its ability to supply oil to the rest of the world

How can energy use be managed to ensure sustainability?

Managing energy supply is about balancing socio-economic and environmental needs. This requires detailed planning and management

Types of renewable energy

Germany – meeting energy demands in a sustainable way

Iceland – geothermal power and HEP

Energy management and conservation

Improved management of energy supplies is vital because:

•Fossil fuels are running out

•Emissions having a negative effect on the environment

•The cost of building large energy installations is high

Carbon trading is an EU policy – heavy industrial plants have to buy permits to emit greenhouse gases over the limit they are allowed. This could extend to other organisations e.g. supermarkets and banks

British Government promote the use of visual display electricity metres so people can see how much they are using

Community energy is a solution – energy produced close to the source to prevent energy being lost in transmission

Solar

Wind

Biomass Geothermal

Tidal

OTEC

5th largest consumer of energy in the world

Apart from coal Germany does not possess and significant fossil fuel reserves + large energy import bill

Developing renewable energy is important to Germany’s energy security as well as its ambitions to improve the quality of the environment

Germany is one of the leading countries in the world in promoting renewable energy. Renewable energy is no an important industrial sector

Germany meets 5% of its electricity needs with HEP. HEP is mainly located in the pre-Alpine region where physical and precipitation characteristics are most favourable

Germany meets 5.7% of its electricity needs with wind power, with more than 18,000 turbines employing 64000 people. Germany is now looking to construct off shore wind farms to support the onshore wind farms.

The government has legislated to promote wind power (Renewable Energy Sources Act), this means that a minimum price has been guaranteed for the next 20 years for electricity fed into the grid and power companies have to take this electricity by law.

Germany has a $5billion photovoltaic industry accounting for 52% of the world’s installed panels. The largest photovoltaic system is in Bavaria Solar park in Muehlausen

Bio energy is being explored – Juhnde near Gottingenis Germany’s first model bio energy village

Only a few regions in Germany have potential for geothermal power