SOURCES OF ENERGY
ENVIRONMENTAL
CONSEQUENCES
Exploiting sources of energy disturbs the environment.
Selection
of a source depends on factors such as
o Ease of extracting energy from the source.
o Economics of extracting energy from the
source.
o Efficiency of the available technology.
o Environmental damage caused by using the source.
Some energy sources
are cleaner than others causing very less environmental damage. E.g. Solar
energy, CNG.
Some devices like solar
cell are pollution-free, but their assembly may cause environmental damage.
HOW
LONG WILL AN ENERGY SOURCE LAST US?
Energy sources are classified as follows:
o
Renewable source: They can be
regenerated in nature. E.g. Sun, wind, moving water, biomass, etc.
o
Non-renewable source: They cannot be
regenerated in nature. E.g. Coal, petroleum, natural gas, etc.
Non-renewable
resources are Exhaustible.
o Exhaustible sources: They will get depleted
after a few hundred years. E.g. Coal, petroleum, etc.
o Inexhaustible resources: They are unlimited and will not exhaust in future. E.g. Biomass, sun etc.
