Fossil Fuels of the Southeast Region

Fossil Fuels in the Southeast

Coal Mines and Oil Rigs

Poll

How much do you already know about fossil fuels?

• A know a lot about fossil fuels and I could teach a friend!

• I may have heard of them before.

• What is a fossil fuel?

What is a fossil fuel?

All the machines of modern life require energy to make them run. About 90 percent of that energy comes from burning fossil fuels. Fossil fuels include petroleum (oil), coal, and natural gas. These materials are called fossil fuels because, like fossils, they are the remains of organisms that lived long ago. Organisms are plants, animals, and other living things...Fossil fuels release harmful gases when they are burned. ~Britannica Kids

Multiple Select

Choose all of the fossil fuels.

• Petroleum (oil)

• Water

• Coal

• Dirt

• Natural Gas

Bus Tour Time!

Welcome to Appalachia. This mountain area is located in the southern part of the Appalachian mountain range. Appalachia has no exact borders. It covers most of West Virginia and parts of several other states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. A bus is a good way to travel through these mountains.

Coal

Appalachia is too hilly for large-scale farming, but it is rich in minerals. Minerals are natural substances found in rocks. One important mineral is coal. Coal is used to heat homes and produce electricity.

Multiple Choice

Fill in the blank: Coal is used to heat homes and produce ________.

• electricity

• water

• fire

Strip Mines

There are underground coal mines in Appalachia. Miners have dug tunnels into the mountains to get at the coal hidden inside. Some coal also comes from strip mines like the one you see here. Strip mines are mines that are found on the surface. Miners use heavy machinery to strip away the dirt and rocks covering the coal. Then they use giant shovels to dig the coal out of the mountain.

To the Motorboat!

It is time for us to board a motorboat for the short journey to an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.

An Oil Rig in the Gulf of Mexico

Many people who live near the Gulf Coast are oil workers. Another name for oil is petroleum. The state of Louisiana has more than 58,000 wells that pump petroleum out of the ground.

Petroleum

Petroleum is a thick, black liquid that is found deep in the soil and under the ocean floor. Drilling for oil under the ocean is not easy, and oil workers build huge platforms, called rigs, to hold their machinery. Then they drill down under the sea until they find oil.

Multiple Select

Choose all the places we can find oil.

• underground

• under the ocean floor

• in the sky

The Uses of Petroleum

Once the oil is pumped out of the earth, it is sent to a factory. This factory is called a refinery, and it turns petroleum into useful products. The product you probably know best is gasoline for cars.

Petrochemicals

Oil is also used to make petrochemicals, a big word that means “chemicals made from oil.” Petrochemicals are used in all kinds of products, from medicines to plastics. I'll bet you're wearing a petrochemical product right now. It might be a button, a zipper, or the soles of your running shoes.

Open Ended

What is one thing that petroleum can be used for?

Open Ended

What did you learn about fossil fuels today?