Renewable Resources

9 Key excerpts on "Renewable Resources"

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  eBook - ePub

  Environmental Issues and Challenges

  • Abhik Gupta, Susmita Gupta(Authors)
  • 2023(Publication Date)
  • Routledge India

    (Publisher)

  Renewable and non-Renewable Resources

  DOI: 10.4324/9781032619873-5

  5.1. Concept of resource: Renewable and non-renewable resource

  The Cambridge Dictionary defines resource as “a useful or valuable possession or quality of a country, organization, or person.” It then defines natural resource as “things such as minerals, forests, coal, etc. that exist in a place and can be used by people” … or “oil, minerals, forests, etc. that exist in a place and that have economic value to a country.” It also adds that “Some natural resources, such as natural gas and fossil fuel, cannot be replaced.” Thus, natural resources from a human perspective are naturally occurring substances that have some economic value. However, from a broader ecological perspective, a resource is a substance or service that is required by plants and animals for their growth, maintenance, and reproduction, such as food, water, sunlight, and habitat. Humans have exploited natural resources since the dawn of civilization, although because of the small population size and low intensity of demand accompanied by lack of large-scale technology, the quantum of resource extraction was low and within sustainable levels.

  Natural resources can be classified in several ways. The terminology also varies according to various authors/schools of thought. The most common approaches are outlined here. One way to classify resources is to base it on “exhaustibility” and “renewability.” According to this approach, resources could be classified into the following categories:

  1. Inexhaustible or perpetual resources: These include solar, wind, tidal, and atomic energy, rainfall, and hydropower. These resources are virtually available in unlimited quantities, which are not affected by human activities.
  2. Exhaustible resources: Exhaustible resources can be of the following types:
     1. Renewable Resources: Some resources can be regenerated through efficient management. Almost all biotic resources, that is, plants and animals can be regenerated if managed properly. Thus, forests can be regenerated through careful harvesting of the stock and planting to replenish the ones taken out. Similarly, rangelands, which sustain grazing animals, wildlife, and agricultural resources such as food crops, are all renewable. Soil and water can also be considered as Renewable Resources, although some scientists want to consider these under a separate category termed as cyclic resources. This is because these resources pass on an on through some processes to get renewed. These processes are influenced by human activities. Hence, these should be carefully monitored to ensure the cyclic regeneration of these resources. Otherwise, soil may lose its fertility or get salinized, waterlogged, or polluted. Water may become polluted to lose its required quality, or get depleted in a given area.

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  The Blue Planet

  An Introduction to Earth System Science

  • Brian J. Skinner, Barbara W. Murck(Authors)
  • 2011(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  Renewable Resources that have very long regeneration periods are extremely vulnerable, because they can so easily become effectively nonrenew- able as a result of overly intensive use. In contrast, nonRenewable Resources are only replen- ished on a timescale that greatly exceeds the scale of a human lifetime—or even a human civilization. The geologic processes responsible for the formation of most types of mineral and energy resources are still operating today, but they may take hundreds of millions of years to complete. As a society, we can’t wait that long to replenish a resource that has been used up. Therefore, it is more accurate to say that nonRenewable Resources are not renewable or replenishable on a humanly accessible timescale. For example, the geologic processes that led to the formation of the great coal deposits that we cur- rently use to generate much of our electricity happened, for the most part, 100 million years ago, during the Middle Cretaceous Period when tropical climates and swamps were widespread. Coal-forming processes are still happening today, but as a society we cannot afford to wait another 100 million years for those resources to be ready for use. Some resources are truly nonrenewable. When an atom is split for the purpose of extracting nuclear energy, for example, that atom will never be put back together again. Similarly, some resources are renewed on such a continuous basis that they might be referred to as inexhaustible or perpetual resources. An exam- ple is solar energy, along with some of the resources that derive from it, such as wind and wave energy. As long as there is an Earth–Sun system, solar energy will arrive at the surface of the planet—it is an inexhaust- ible source. Finally, it can be useful to categorize resources on the basis of how they are managed, rather than how they are formed. An important category is common property resources—resources that are commonly or communally owned, accessed, or managed.

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  Renewable Resources and Global Challenges

  • Mohit Chhabra(Author)
  • 2019(Publication Date)
  • Delve Publishing

    (Publisher)

  1.1. INTRODUCTION Renewable sources of energy refer to the sources of those energies that are naturally acquired from the atmosphere and that are utilized from the sources that are naturally replenished and available. There are different types of renewable energy sources such as solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, hydropower, and biomass. Figure 1.1: Representation of renewable sources of energy. Sources: https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2018/09/17/12/05/ener-gy-3683673_960_720.jpg, https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2017/04/01/15/05/ Introduction to Renewable Resources 3 big-waves-2193828_960_720.jpg, https://www.flickr.com/photos/ly-dur/4132279118, https://c.pxhere.com/photos/d0/41/wind_energy_renewable_ enegy_windmill_wind_mill_energy_rotation_power-993970.jpg!d, https://cdn. pixabay.com/photo/2017/07/11/08/33/dam-2492809_960_720.jpg Energy is something that is utilized everyday and is being used in day to day lives of people. The increase in science and technology and arrival of a number of novel inventions is leading to a number of gadgets and equipment that are put to use in everyday life. The increase in number of innovations that facilitate human beings lives everyday are known to demand and need enormous amounts of energy which is being used from fossil fuels. However, the use of a number of fossil fuels such as propane or electricity for lighting, heating, and powering of our devices is known to have created a huge amount of need for a variety of fossil fuels in large quantities because these are depleting non-renewable sources of energy. Therefore, to meet the demands of the energy requirement people started becoming more and more dependent on the renewable sources of energy that are freely available. There are a number of items such as computers, phone networks, servers, and security systems, shopping malls, parking lots, sports stadiums, cars, airplanes, and others which are increasing rapidly with the increase in technology.

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  Environmental Studies

  • Dhankhar, Rajesh(Authors)
  • 2021(Publication Date)
  • Daya Publishing House

    (Publisher)

  Solar energy is a form of renewable resource. It is in the form of heat, wind, water and wood and can be converted into other forms of energy. Examples of Renewable Resources are grasslands, forests trees, animals, lakes, ground water, fertile soil and fresh air. Non-Renewable Resources –These cannot be regenerated. Hence, they need to be used in a judicious manner. These are also known as exhaustible resources because they exist in fixed quantities in the Earth’s crust. For example coal, copper, oil and aluminium. Now 80 per cent of the estimated supply has been extracted from earth. Non-Renewable Resources such as oil, coal and natural gas cannot be recycled and reused. But contrary to this, renewable material resources can be recycled and reused. FOREST RESOURCES Forests are one of the most important natural resources on earth. They cover earth like a blanket and provide innumerable material goods and environmental services. Forests are important for ecological balance of an area. They are essential components of our environment and economy. About 1/3rd of earth’s land area is covered with forest. Although natural forest have declined every where in the world, greatest loss has occured in tropical Asia. USSR accounts for fifth and Brazil for seventh of the world’s forest. Uses of Forests Following are the uses of forests: This ebook is exclusively for this university only. Cannot be resold/distributed. 1. Check air and noise pollution: Forests can absorb many toxic gases and thus keep the air pure. Trees can also absorb noise and lower down the noise pollution level. 2. Reduce wind erosion: In deserts, forests reduce wind erosion by checking wind velocity. 3. Reduce soil erosion: Forests bind the soil particles with root and prevent soil erosion, particularly in hilly areas. 4. Prevent landslides: Forests also reduce landslides by binding the soil particles with their roots. 5. Protection to wildlife: Forests provide homes to millions of wild animals and plants.

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  Visualizing Geology

  • Barbara W. Murck, Brian J. Skinner(Authors)
  • 2016(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  Groundwater drawn from wells may eventually be replenished by rainwater. renewable resource A resource that can be replenished on the scale of a human lifetime. But what does it mean to say that these resources are replenished or regenerated “eventually”? Some resources take a very long time to regenerate—longer than humans are willing or able to wait. For example, the aquifers under the Sahara Desert formed tens of thousands of years ago, when the climate was moister than it is today, and they will not be replenished until the climate changes again, perhaps tens of thousands of years from now. For practical purposes, we con- sider these to be nonRenewable Resources. Resources such as coal, oil, copper, iron, gold, and fer- tilizers are mined from mineral deposits. Mineral deposits are known to be forming today, but the rate of formation is exceedingly slow. For example, it may take 600,000 years for a large copper deposit to be formed. From a human point of view, all mineral resources are one-crop resources, and Earth’s supply of those “crops” is fixed. One of the defining characteristics of nonRenewable Resources is that they are constantly being depleted as we use them. Humans are the first and only species to routinely use nonRenewable Resources. It does not seem to be in our na- ture to stop. However, history suggests that we should use such resources very judiciously and monitor how much we have left. That is what the Rapa Nui and the Garamantes failed to do. After the cultures that produced the moai and the foggara died out, their descendants had to adapt to the new conditions. The Easter Islanders developed new ritu- als that allocated their limited food resources. The inhabi- tants of the Sahara developed a nomadic lifestyle that was not dependent on the extraction of deeply buried ground- water.

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  Earth Science and Human History 101

  • John J.W. Rogers, Trileigh (Patricia) L. Tucker(Authors)
  • 2008(Publication Date)
  • Greenwood

    (Publisher)

  4 Resources and the Environment Geology and atmospheric dynamics control the distribution of natu- ral resources around the world. Reallocating these resources so that they are shared with those in countries other than where they originate has profoundly shaped world history, including power relationships, na- tional boundaries, and the well-being of billions of people throughout geography and time. We discuss five critical aspects of present and past consumption of resources and the environmental consequences of their use: (1) en- ergy resources; (2) mineral and rock resources; (3) food resources; (4) fresh water resources; and (5) wireless communication and the Internet, which has recently become one of the world’s most powerful resources. Energy resources have been critical to cultural evolution throughout history because use of stored energy multiplies the productivity of hu- man and animal energy. The activities involved in discovery, extraction, refining, purchase, delivery, and use of these energy resources constitute a significant proportion of world economic activity. All energy sources, however, create significant problems. The United States must import most of its oil, and world reserves are being depleted. Burning fossil fuels has serious consequences for global atmospheric processes (see Chapter 1). Nuclear fuels have several downsides, partly because ra- dioactive elements can be used for making the most powerful weapons ever invented, and radioactive isotopes are very hard to get rid of safely once they have been created for any purpose. Fully renewable energy resources include hydropower, solar and wind energy, and biofuels, but production of some biofuels reduces the amount of food available for people. Mineral and rock resources have been critical for making tools and other physical goods throughout history and also for serving as symbols

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  Fundamentals of Environmental Studies

  • Mahua Basu, Xavier Savarimuthu, SJ(Authors)
  • 2017(Publication Date)
  • Cambridge University Press

    (Publisher)

  27 Natural Resources – Energy B. Based on the degree to which they are developing/processing i. Currently used resources Those resources which are presently used for human use. For example, coal and petroleum. ii. Potential resources These include untouched and untapped resources for future use. Hydrogen is one such resource. C. On the basis of regeneration ability or continual supply i. Renewable Resources They are resources, which can be recycled, or resources that can be replenished quickly through natural cycle. For example, solar radiation, wind energy, water energy, biomass energy (solar energy stored in wood), agricultural products, forests, wildlife, etc. If they are consumed at a rate exceeding their natural rate of replacement, the stock will eventually run out. Non-living renewable natural resources are soil and water. ii. Non-Renewable Resources The resources, which cannot be replenished or are replenished very slowly, are non-Renewable Resources. They can be: Recyclable: These resources can be collected after use and recycled. For example, aluminium and other metals after being used are collected and recycled. Non-recyclable: These resources cannot be recycled in any way. For example, coal, oil and natural gas. Natural resources are natural capital that can be made in to commodity inputs to infrastructural capital or wealth-creating procedures. They can be soil, timber, oil, minerals and other materials derived from the Earth. Natural resource activities incorporate both the extraction of the elementary resource as well as refining and purifying it into a usable form. D. Based on physical existence – tangible and non-tangible resources A tangible resource is something that is physical in as much that we can touch or feel it. A non-tangible resource, on the other hand, is something that cannot be felt. Coal and iron ore for example are tangible resources, while the goodwill of a company or its brand value is an example of non-tangible resource.

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  Wind Solar Hybrid Renewable Energy System

  • Kenneth Eloghene Okedu, Ahmed Tahour, Abdel Ghani Aissaou, Kenneth Eloghene Okedu, Ahmed Tahour, Abdel Ghani Aissaou(Authors)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • IntechOpen

    (Publisher)

  Along with the outstanding advan-tages of these resources, some shortcomings also exist such as the variation of output due to seasonal change, which is the common thing for wind and hydroelectric power plant; hence, special design and consideration are required, which are fulfilled by the hardware and software due to the improvement in computer technology. Keywords: conventional energy resources, social, environmental, economical, hydropower, photovoltaic, geothermal 1. Introduction Renewable energy is going to be an important source for power generation in the near future, because we can use these resources again and again to produce useful energy. The energy resources are normally classified as fossil resources, renew-able, and nuclear energy resources. Different renewable energy resources, like hydropower, wind, solar, biomass, ocean energy, biofuel, geothermal, etc., provide 15–20% of the total world’s energy. The world is going to turn into a global village due to more requirement of energy due to fast growing population, which leads to Wind Solar Hybrid Renewable Energy System 228 the use the fossil fuels like coal, gas, and oil to fulfill the energy requirement, which creates unsustainable situations and many problems like depletion of fossil fuels, environmental and geographical conflicts, greenhouse effect, global warming, and fluctuation in fuel prices. Due to environment-friendly and less emission of gases from renewable energy, it is considered as sustainable energy; also supported for the society from each dimensions like economic, social and environmental. “Approximately 1.6 billion people have no access to electricity and about 1.1 bil-lion are without water supply” [1]. Renewable energy resources have an ability to complete the world’s energy demand, protect the environment, and provide energy security.

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  Emerging Developments in the Power and Energy Industry

  Proceedings of the 11th Asia-Pacific Power and Energy Engineering Conference (APPEEC 2019), April 19-21, 2019, Xiamen, China

  • Rodolfo Dufo-López, Jaroslaw Krzywanski, Jai Singh(Authors)
  • 2019(Publication Date)
  • CRC Press

    (Publisher)

  3.1 Sustainable development Sustainable energy is the energy that, in its production or consumption, has minimal negative impacts on human health and the healthy functioning of vital ecological systems, including the global environment. It is an accepted fact that renewable energy is a sustainable form of energy, which has attracted more attention during recent years. Increasing environmental interest, as well as economic consideration of fossil fuel consumption and high emphasis of sustainable development for the future helped to bring the great potential of renewable energy into focus Wu, and Boggess (1999). Nearly a fifth of all global power is generated by renew-able energy sources, according to a new book published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)/International Energy Association (IEA) OECD/IEA (2004). ‘‘ Renewables for power generation: status and prospects ’’ claims that, at approxi-mately 20%, renewables are the second largest power source after coal (39%) and ahead of nuclear (17%), natural gas (17%) and oil (8%) respectively. From 1973-2000 renewables grew at 9.3% a year and it is predicted that this will increase by 10.4% a year to 2010. Wind power grew fastest at 52% and will multiply seven times by 2010, overtaking biopower and hence help reducing green house gases, GHGs, emissions to the environment. 4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS The availability of data on solar radiation is a critical problem. Even in developed countries, very few weather stations have been recording detailed solar radiation data for a period of time long enough to have statistical significance. Solar radiation arriving on earth is the most fundamental renewable energy source in nature. It powers the bio-system, the ocean and atmospheric current system and affects the global climate.

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