AQA Geography GCSE

Energy Resource Management

Detailed Notes

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Resources across the Globe
There are many resources that humans need to live or use to enhance their living. A resource is a
product that is valuable to living. Essential global resources can be split into three groups: food,
water and energy.

Types of Energy Sources

Before we talk about energy consumption and trends across the world, we need to know the
different sources of energy. Each source comes with their own benefits and risks, so
governments have to weigh up the pros and cons before choosing an energy source. Often,
countries use a mix of energies so they don’t rely on one source.

Fossil Fuels - Coal, Oil, Gas Nuclear Energy

Source: DB Daily Updates Source: The Conversation

Description: Fuels that take thousands of Description: Using Uranium (through nuclear
years to form underground, from dead fission) to produce energy
vegetation and animals. 👍 Very reliable output of energy, so
👍 Cheap to mine good base energy source throughout
👍 High demand, since fossil fuels can the year
be used in all countries and provide a 👎 Risk of radiation poisoning if
reliable source of energy uncontrolled (Chernobyl)
👎 Polluting - releases carbon dioxide 👎 Any waste must be sealed in
and methane, which contributes to concrete and glass, and left
Global Warming underground for hundreds of years
👎 Non-renewable, so limited supply left 👎 When the power station is finished, it
of coal is expensive to decommission

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 Solar Power Wind Power

Source: Green Energy Times Source: The Balance

Description: Panels that convert the sun’s Description: Wind drives large turbines and
energy into electricity generators that produce electricity
👍 Costs are decreasing rapidly 👍 Low running costs
👍 Large potential in desert areas 👍 Can be used year round
👎 Not very efficient yet (15-20%) 👍 Plenty of suitable sites
👎 Effectiveness dependent on climate 👎 Bird life can be affected
and time of the year and day 👎 Weather dependent

Wave Power Tidal Power

Source: E360 Yale University Source: Renewable Energy World

Description: Waves force a turbine to rotate Description: Incoming tides drive turbines in
and produce energy - or other similar method similar way to hydropower
👍 Produce most electricity during winter 👍 Has significant potential
when demand is highest 👍 Reliable source of energy once
👍 Pioneer projects are commencing installed
across the globe 👎 Very expensive
👎 Very expensive and a ‘perfect’ 👎 Few schemes currently operating in
solution is yet to be created the world
👎 Needs to survive storms 👎 Impact on marine life

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 Hydroelectric Power (HEP) Biomass/ Biofuel

Source: Research Gate Source: Eletimes

Description: Water from a reservoir pushes Description: Vegetation and waste food can
turbines built within a dam, as it escapes be burned (as pellets or directly into the fire)
downhill 👍 Cheap and easy to find
👍 Dams built for reservoirs can also 👍 Biofuel is a renewable alternative to
generate electricity, improving clean oil, which doesn’t require car engines
water and energy supplies to be modified
👎 Large dams are expensive to build 👎 Vegetation must be found
👎 Disrupts fish migration along the river, sustainably, so land shouldn’t be
as fish cannot swim through the dam cleared for biofuels and not
replanted.

Geothermal

Source: Daniel Allen

Description: Water is pumped beneath the

ground to hot areas and the steam from the
water drives turbines to produce electricity
👍 Low maintenance costs
👍 Suitable where other technologies
might not be
👎 High installation cost
👎 Risk during earthquakes etc.

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Energy Distribution
Across the world, the demand for electricity varies as well as the method we use to generate
electricity. We require electricity for many purposes: household appliances (TVs, washing
machines, etc), industry (machinery and factories), transport (for example trams).

Graph A - Source: Our World in Data Graph B - Source: secret-bases.co.uk

The consumption of energy across the world can be shown in many different graphs: Graph A,
showing the type of energy source used and the amount of energy it contributes, or Graph B, which
shows the amount of energy consumed by each country.

In general, the world is demanding more and more energy. This is because the world’s population
is growing, as is as the number of developed countries. As countries develop, they demand more
electricity for household appliances and evolving industries.

However, there are many inequalities between countries relating to electricity:

➔ The richest, more developed countries consume much more electricity than poorer, less
developed countries.
➔ Not all countries have sources of energy. Most of the world’s oil can be found in Saudi
Arabia, whereas countries (such as Chad and Sudan) have no fossil fuels to burn and few
bodies of water to use to generate electricity.
➔ In general, fossil fuels tend to be cheaper and easier to source than renewable sources.
Therefore only the most developed, high income countries can afford to generate electricity
sustainably.

Energy Security
A country can have energy surplus or energy deficit. This depends on how much energy a
country can produce and how much its population and industries demand. If the supply exceeds
demand, the country has energy surplus. If the supply is less than the demand, the country has an
energy deficit. Some examples of different countries’ security is given in the table below:

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 Energy Surplus Energy Deficit

- Russia - due to its large natural gas - Western Europe - The UK has largely
and oil fields, as well as many nuclear used up its supply of coal during the
plants. mining era.

- Middle East - Saudia Arabia, Iran, Iraq - Asia - Rapidly growing population
and Kuwait have between them 100 means rapid demand outweighs the
billion barrels of oil to be extracted, supply of energy.
making them wealthy and energy
secure.

Controversial Nuclear
Nuclear energy has many benefits:

👍 Reliable source of constant energy since nuclear fission is a constant process and so the
same amount of energy can be produced each day.
👍 The fuel (Uranium) is extremely concentrated, so there are small mining sites required to
fuel the nuclear plant.
👍 The nuclear industry creates many employment opportunities at each plant. 475,000 jobs
are created in the US’s nuclear sector, from head engineers to cleaners.

However, not all countries believe nuclear energy is a good idea as the biggest negative is the
possibility of a nuclear meltdown, the effects of which are incredibly long lasting. The land around
Chernobyl (a nuclear power station in Ukraine) is still full of radiation and the effects are still being
felt to this day. Due to this, some governments have adopted anti-nuclear policies. Countries such
as Germany and Denmark don’t use nuclear power stations to generate energy. This is because
these populations share anti-nuclear views and are scared of the radiation risk. In recent years,
fewer countries wish to build nuclear power plants after the 2011 Fukushima Disaster.

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Factors that Affect Energy Supply
There are physical and human factors that can affect the energy supply.

- Government policies affect which types of energy can and

cannot be used. This will affect the overall supply of energy for
a country. For example, Germany has decided to stop using
nuclear power plants, which could put pressure on its other
energy sources to meet demand.
- Conflict can prevent energy sources being extracted. For
example, conflict in Iraq stopped oil production which
Human Factors impacted the price of oil in global markets.
- The development of a country will affect the technology
available. Some energy sources are difficult to extract or
power stations require high tech monitoring. This means
countries with low levels of technology cannot use some
energy sources, such as nuclear.

- Not all countries have access to all energy sources

- Fossil fuels can be found only for specific geology
types - either sedimentary rock or natural gas/oil has
become trapped in rocks.
- Geothermal energy can only be produced near
magma plumes, which are only found near tectonic
Physical Factors boundaries or in individual pockets.
- Climate can impact the efficiency of renewable sources
- Solar energy relies on limited cloud cover, so rainy
climates are unsuitable for lots of solar panels.
- Not all countries have wind powerful enough for wind
turbines. Turbines are best out at sea, or built across
low-lying plains.
- For a country to use tidal energy, it must have coasts.
Therefore landlocked countries cannot use tidal power.
- Similarly, HEP requires dams to be built in mountainous
areas. Therefore the shape of the land (morphology) is
important.

- The cost involved in using an energy source could be too

much for a country, and make the electricity generated
unaffordable for families. There are many different ways that
cost can be added to an energy source:
- Extraction of the energy source could require
specialist equipment or high pressure.
Economic Factors - The energy source is dangerous (ie radioactive, or
mining is hazardous) therefore wages must be higher
to compensate for the risk.
- Transportation of energy sources from mining to
processing can involve many kilometers of pipelines or
regular freight ships, which are costly to use.

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Impacts of Energy Insecurity
Energy shortages have major implications for our lifestyles and our industries. We can split these
impacts into three categories:

1. Impacts on Food Production

Farming and agriculture demands a large amount of

energy each year. This is used to power
machinery, as fuel for tractors and harvesters, as
well as heating barns and greenhouses in the
winter. Many farmers rely on fossil fuels, since they
use old petrol-powered engines that are affordable
and within their knowledge to fix.
Source: Thought Co

However, to try to reduce the greenhouse

emissions produced by tractors and machinery, some farmers are choosing to use
biofuels. Also, some farmers have stopped growing food crops and are instead growing
crops for biofuels. This has mixed implications for the world:

👍 Biofuels are carbon neutral and so greatly reduce the

need for oil or coal. Petrol engines don’t need adapting to
use biofuels, so there is minimal cost to farmers who
swap fuels.

👎 Biofuels take up land that could be used for growing

food crops, which increases the pressure on existing food
supplies. In some countries (such as Mexico) this has led
to riots; the people are unhappy that their government
leaves them hungry but makes money producing biofuels.
Source: BBC News

2. Impacts on Industry

Many industries require a constant supply of electricity for their computers in offices and
machinery in production lines. Therefore, many TNCs will set up operations in countries
where they have constant, cheap supply of energy. This
means developing countries - where their energy
infrastructure is still developing and they may have
regular power cuts - can miss out on business
opportunities.
Source: Industry Forum

If energy costs too much for a company, their products

will cost more and so a business may not make enough
profits. Countries who import energy are vulnerable to
changes or fluctuations in price. If the country they get their gas from decides to increase
their prices then there’s not much they can do to stop them. This can have a negative impact
on the economy. This is why it’s preferable to produce your own energy.

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 3. Potential for Conflict

When supply cannot meet demand, the price of

electricity/fuel will rise. This can result in inequality
between who can afford electricity and who cannot.
This can lead to many other disadvantages:

- Children become behind with their education if

they cannot access the internet.
Source: DQ Channels

- Unemployed people have a smaller chance of finding new work, especially with
many online job websites.
- Families can become isolated if they cannot communicate through the internet or
over the phone. In emergencies, how could they contact an ambulance with an
uncharged phone?
- Businesses cannot afford to run machinery and earn less profits, making it more
difficult to continue trading.

This can lead to anger within a country. There are many cases of rioting and protests, such
as in 2018, when France protested over rising fuel taxes.

Finally, energy can be a vulnerability for a country and the

supply chain can be at risk to attack. For example, a terrorist
group or pirates could hijack an oil supply (see Somalian
Pirates) or a country could cut off the supply following political
disagreements with another country (see Iran tanker capture in
2019). This can threaten the energy supply, which could
escalate tensions and lead to conflict.
Source: Business Insider

Sensitive Energy Sources

Since we have consumed a lot of energy sources within the last century, many easy-access energy
sources have been mined and consumed. For example, in the UK, shallow coal beds and oil fields
were mined and drained up until the 1950s. As the places which are easy to extract from have all
been used up, more dangerous or risky environments now have to be exploited. For example:

➔ Miners have to drill deeper to find coal and oil that hasn’t been exploited. Drilling deeper
into the ground increases the risk of earthquakes, mines collapsing and high pressure
ruptures in the rock, which could release the oil and let it escape.
➔ Energy sources in hostile environments are to be exploited. For example, there are large
reserves of oil locked in the Middle East. Some of the Middle East is occupied by militant
groups, so workers are at high risk of capture or being hurt during conflict.
➔ There are some fossil fuel stores in fragile environments, such as the Amazon and
Antarctica. Despite being fragile ecosystems with many rare and endangered species,
some governments are looking to exploit the oil found here.

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Increasing Energy Supplies
There are many countries that experience energy insecurity now. However, there are many more
countries that will experience energy insecurity in the future. Therefore, governments are looking
ahead to improve their energy sources now and for the future:

➔ Will the energy source run out? Is it non-renewable? Have we over-used this source,
meaning we take more than is replaced?
➔ Do we rely on other countries for our energy? What if we have different political beliefs?
Will there be conflict in the future, which could stop any energy trade?
➔ Could we reduce our energy consumption, especially in terms of how much energy is
wasted?
➔ Will our climate change in the future, due to the Greenhouse Effect? Will the renewable
sources we use now be able to be used in the future? For example, will our climate warm up
so fewer vegetation can grow and be used for biofuel?

Governments can choose to use new sources of energy to increase the amount of electricity
generated. There are many strategies to choosing their energy mix (the different sources of energy
that a country uses):

Governments can choose to develop their renewable energy

sources to avoid running out of fossil fuels in the future. Countries
that can afford these sources can have low carbon dioxide
emissions, but to depend completely on renewables is risky since
solar and wind don’t produce constant supplies of electricity all
year (for instance, it’s not sunny all year or there may not be
The Sustainable Approach enough wind).

Countries that are developing (such as Brazil and the Philippines)

require energy for their industries. Energy should be cheap and
reliable, since businesses will not develop if they cannot afford to
run their machinery or cannot access the internet throughout the
day.
Developing and Economic Therefore, many developing countries rely on fossil fuels as coal
and oil are cheap sources of energy.

An increasing number of countries are choosing to have a varied

energy mix so they don’t rely on a single source of energy. This is
good for resources, as supplies won’t be exhausted as quickly.
To achieve a mixed energy mix, countries need to produce a base
amount of energy from a dependable source (such as coal or
nuclear). However, to match any sudden spikes in energy
demand, countries could use renewable or alternative sources to
Dependable Supply meet the short term peak (such as HEP or biomass).

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Energy in the UK
Within the last decade, the UK’s energy consumption has decreased. This is because the UK’s
manufacturing industry has decreased (such as the production of cars, steel and textiles) and our
technology has developed to become more efficient. Therefore the amount of energy our
household appliances waste has decreased.

However, there is still a very high portion of fossil fuels burned

to generate electricity. The picture to the left shows the energy
mix for the UK in 2018. 46% of the UK’s energy is generated by
burning coal and natural gas. In addition, nearly a fifth of the
UK’s energy is generated using nuclear power plants, which
don’t directly release greenhouse gases but instead pose a
large radiation risk.

Why has the UK’s energy mix changed?

● Approximately 75% of the UK’s own energy sources (predominantly coal beds) have been
exhausted. Therefore it became cheaper to import energy than to extract fossil fuels from
deeper beds (which is more hazardous and not as profitable).
● Coal has also declined due to the negative impacts of burning coal on the environment. Coal
is heavily polluting, releasing large quantities of carbon dioxide when burned. This
contributes to Global Warming. The UK Government has agreed to close all coal-powered
power stations by 2025, converting them into biomass plants or decommissioning them.
● A growing awareness of renewable sources has meant an increase in green tariffs in the
UK. This means that the consumer is choosing to use energy only produced using
renewable or carbon neutral energy sources. Green tariffs may cost more, but more of the
UK’s population is choosing to be environmentally friendly.

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Fracking
In the UK, fracking is a much debated and a controversial issue. The UK has a supply of natural
gas trapped in shale rocks (a sedimentary rock made from fine sands, silts and mud). To release
this trapped natural gas, the process of fracking is used:

Source: No Majesty

Fracking involves pushing high-pressure liquids underground, which causes the shale rocks to
crack and the natural gas to escape. There are many protests against fracking, because

👎 Fracking is an energy-intensive process, since pressurising the liquids requires a lot of

energy. Therefore fracking is expensive and the price of natural gas may increase to make
up for the expenses.
👎 There is a risk of earthquakes due to fracking, as the shale rocks crack underground. If
these earthquakes are strong enough, structural damage to buildings on the surface could
occur. However, up till now, the UK has only experienced up to 2.0 magnitude earthquakes
due to fracking (not high enough to cause damage).
👎 There is also a risk that the pressurised liquids infiltrate and pollute underground water
sources. The liquids forced underground can be mixed with chemicals and salt, to increase
the probability that the shale rock cracks.

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