Changing+patterns+of+energy+consumption

 The diagram to the left shows the trend of world energy production since the 1980s. In 2009 global production was about 84m barrels per day. 50% of global oil production is done by 8 major countries – Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Mexico, Norway, The USA, Russia, Iran and China. Oil is a finite resource and it predicted that oil reserves will be exhausted within 45 years, except in some Middle Eastern countries, where they are expected to last longer.
 * Changing Patterns in Oil Production**

Nearly two-thirds of the world oil reserves are in the Middle East. The ‘ Limits to Growth ’, published in 1972 predicted that the world’s oil reserves will be exhausted by 1992. This did not happen, but it caused widespread concern about oil at that time. The term ‘peak oil’ is used to define the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production begins to decline. Globally, oil production and distribution are affected by political and military decisions.
 * Changing Patterns in Oil Consumption**

Political developments in the Middle East, especially Iran and Saudi Arabia, has implication in world politics. While OPEC countries produce about 40% of the world's oil, they hold 80% of proven global reserves, and 85% of these reserves are in the Middle East. The oil wealth of OPEC countries allows them to be the strategic pivot of world politics and economy. The US for instance, imports about 55% of the oil it consumes. This leaves the US vulnerable to the unilateral political and economic acts by oil producing countries. For example, after an unsuccessful Yom Kippur War with Israel in 1973, an OPEC oil embargo by Arab nations was meant to punish the US and UK for their involvement in the war in favor of Israel. This led to an increase in oil prices from $3 a barrel to $12.
 * The geo-political implications of Middle East Oil **

Again, it has been argued that the main reason for the involvement of the US, France and the UK in the civil war in Libya was for the sole purpose of winning oil contracts at concessionary rates after the fall of Gaddafi’s regime. Further still, some Americans have questioned the relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia, after the 9/11 attacks. At the same time, many Saudis have questioned the close ties between their government with the US and resent America’s involvement in the Middle East eg: the bombing of Iraq and the involvement of US in Israeli political affairs. The Geo-politics of oil therefore has serious implications in the world hence, every country (including developed and developing countries) try to establish as positive relationship with Arab states in order to have a continued supply of their oil resources.

Consequently, many nations are stockpiling oil reserves just in case there is a problem with the supply of oil from the Middle East. The Yom Kippur War has taught many advanced nations a great lesson and countries like the US, Japan amd China are stocking large quantities of oil in various locations. For more information, read Why the United States stores 700 millions barrels of oil underground.

Many have argued that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were part of a political strategy by the US to control their oil production in favor of the US. It is estimated that by 2050, land locked Asian countries will produce 80% of US oil needs. This has led to insecurity on the part of most governments regarding the future of oil production. This insecurity emanates from the following: Terrorist activities in most oil producing countries like Nigeria which make their oil production unstable. Emerging economies like Brazil, India, China increasing the demand for crude oil. Geopolitical development: eg. Iran using its oil to ‘flex’ with the West.
 * The future of oil as a resource **

Oil also presents environmental challenges and a recent example is BP’s oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Concerns are therefore raised about the nature of oil consumption in the world and whether countries should continue to depend on oil.
 * Impact of oil extraction and usage **

**Environmental impact** • Disruption of sensitive environments (tundra, rainforest, ocean habitat) <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Transportation spills <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Toxic wastes


 * Social Impacts**


 * Usurpation of indigenous rights
 * Consequences of military interventions

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0); line-height: 1.5;">• Climate change <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0); line-height: 1.5;"> • Air pollution • <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0); line-height: 1.5;">Economic upheaval from disruption of supplies
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Environmental impact **

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Case study-
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">a. Shell and Ogoniland **

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Slide show of pictures of MENDS and Ogoniland in Nigeria.

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"> media type="youtube" key="3A-tLtqM8YU" width="277" height="202"

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">b. Energy on the environment – Oil in Alaska, New wider world pp.128-131

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"> The consequence of the global production and consumption of oil resources has led to the demand for alternative sources of energy. This is in an attempt to minimize the emissions of green house gases associated with the use of oil, and reduce the dependence of major consuming economies on oil-producing countries seeking political supremacy by virtue of their oil (e.g Russia, Iran and Venezuela). Examples of Alternative sources of energy include: Solar, Wind power Tidal Power, Hydro Power, <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Nuclear Power, Coal and Biofuels.
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF ENERGY **

http://energy4me.org/all-about-energy/what-is-energy/

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">In 2008 South Korea opened the world’s largest solar power plant. It covers the equivalent of 93 football stadiums and provides electricity for 100,000 homes. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">The sun is the primary source of solar energy. __<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Advantages: __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It is safe <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It is pollution – free <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It is efficient and of limitless supply. __<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Disadvantages: __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It is expensive to construct a solar station <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It is affected by clouds, seasons and nighttime media type="youtube" key="hI4VQux3qIo" width="382" height="220"
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">1. Solar **

Nuclear power plants provided 10.9 percent of the world's electricity production in 2012. In 2014, 13 countries relied on nuclear energy to supply at least one-quarter of their total electricity. As of July 2015, 30 countries worldwide are operating 438 nuclear reactors for electricity generation and 67 new nuclear plants are under construction in 15 countries (NEI).
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">2. Nuclear Power **

Nuclear power plants generate electricity by converting water at boiling point into steam which is then used to turn turbines to produce electricity. The material used to generate energy for converting water into steam is the uranium fuel which is contained in solid clay pellets. This process is know as fission. Watch the YouTube video below. Visit the Nuclear Energy Institute to know more about nuclear power.

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">__Ad__ media type="youtube" key="jMFdo0n1Nto" width="252" height="138" align="left"<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">__vantages__: <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Cheap, abundant and reliable source of energy <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It can last for several years, unlike coal and oil which lasts for about 30 and 50years respectively. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Western countries would not have to rely on the Middle East for oil <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Requires small amount of uranium to produce enough energy. E.g. 50 tons of uranium per year is equivalent to the amount of energy 500tonnes of coal an produce per hour. Also, a single uranium fuel pellet the size of a fingertip contains as much energy as 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas, 1,780 pounds of coal or 149 gallons of oil.

__<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Disadvantages __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Uranium is a radioactive material so nuclear power industries face the problem of waste disposal <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Cost of decommissioning of old plants and reactors is very high <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Environmental disaster could be very high. E.g Chernobyl, in 1986 and the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster in Japan <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Reference – Geography – An Integrated Approach by David Waugh. Read the whole chapter on Energy

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Wind energy is another viable source of energy that can replace the use of the other sources of energy such as coal, nuclear, oil and gas. F or more on how wind can be used to generate energy visit Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy __<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Advantages: __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• No pollution <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• No finite resources involved <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Reduction in environmental damage elsewhere <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Suitable for small-scale production
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">3. Wind Power: **

__<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Disadvantages: __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Visual impact <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Noise <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Winds may be unreliable <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Large scale development hampered by high initial cost <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Difficulty in finding suitable location See [|how wind energy works]

Hydro electric power is by far one of the most efficient sources of alternative energy. For more on how water is used to generate electricity visit National Geographic //<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Factors affecting location: // <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Relief – needs a valley (gorge) that can be dammed <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• River regime – a reliable supply of water <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Geology – a stable, impermeable rock <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Climate - a reliable supply of rain water <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Market demand – to be profitable <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Transport facilities - to transport energy
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">4. Hydroelectric power: **

__<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Disadvantages __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• HEP plants are costly to build <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Only few places have sufficient head water <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Markets are critical since plants need to run at full capacity <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• May lead to the destruction of human settlements <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Flora and fauna are destroyed as a result of lake development <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It may lead to water borne disease especially for people living close to the lake.

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">__Facts:__ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• The dam was completed in 2009 on the Yangtze in China <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Over 1 million people were relocated from the dam areas <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It is 2km long and 100meters high <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• The Yangtze provides 66% of China’s rice and contains 400million people <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• The Yangtze drains 1.8million square km and discharges 700 cubic meters of water annually.
 * <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Case study- Three Gorges Project **

__<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Benefits of the dam: __ <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Generates 18,000 megawatts of electricity, 8 times more than the Aswan Dam HEP can provide. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It will enable China to reduce its dependence on coal <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It will supply energy to Shanghai with population of about 13 million. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It will protect 10 million people from flooding (over 300 m people died from flooding in the 20th century) <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It will allow shipping above the Three Gorges – dam raised water level by 90meters <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• It has generated thousands of jobs

<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">//Protest against the building of the dam//: <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• That the project was unnecessarily expensive – cost about $70 billion. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• A number of towns and cities, including Wanxian (140,000 people) and Fuling (80,000 people) would be submerged by the dam. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• Flooding has occurred along most rivers that feed the Yangtze river. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• The region is located in a seismically active area and landslides are frequent. <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• The land provided for the resettlement of people affected by the dam is 800m above sea level, very steep with thin soils and colder. NB: Read New Wider World for details on this case study: <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">• 293-295 <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">BBC article on the Three Gorges Dam <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Watch the YouTube video below on the construction of the largest dam in the world - The Three Gorges Dam, China media type="youtube" key="j3J196bLP5E" width="448" height="251" <span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Sources: //<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">World Nuclear Association // //<span class="s3" style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Nuclear Energy Institute // http://education.nationalgeographic.com/encyclopedia/hydroelectric-energy/ http://energy.gov/eere/wind/wind-program